Access to Geospatial Data in 2003: A Global Survey of Public Policy and Technological Factors

Access to global geospatial data, and the way these data are being used, has changed dramatically in the past decade. This is true for a variety of reasons, many of them not readily apparent. This article will explore some of the essential changes in this sphere since the early 1990s, as seen from the perspective of a commercial distributor and service bureau involved with international maps and related data.