Europe’s geospatial data market is highly fragmented. Assets are difficult to discover, assess, and obtain – and that’s not all. There are major obstacles to integrating data into other domains and using them in another country (or in different languages). The Digital Single Market for geospatial data cannot be called a reality. From large multinational companies to young start-ups, most organisations clearly prefer Google Maps-like products that bundle data with services in packages that are streamlined both technically and in terms of business.
At the moment, geospatial assets are certainly lacking in attractiveness and marketability. Data producers and owners often don’t have the instruments they need to harness and share their products’ added value. As a result, Europe’s Data Economy is built on flawed foundations that fail to tap into, promote, and establish growth and economic development. The challenges that both data owners and data consumers face are huge. This is true not only of small companies, but of the big brands, as well.
Explore. Trade. Use. Geodata.
This is where the Topio marketplace comes in! It aims to achieve a breakthrough in trading and sharing commercial geospatial data assets across borders and sectors. The ultimate goal is to make it simple, fast, and more cost-effective for data owners and consumers alike to explore, trade and use geodata.
Unlock the value of your (space) data!
Europe has a lot to offer through its well-supported entrepreneurship programmes, and the data potential just waiting to be tapped is tremendous. In the space sector, the EUR 1 billion Cassini space fund recently announced by the European Commission will provide even more of a boost to start-ups and space innovation.
Through the Topio marketplace, entrepreneurs and start-ups will be able to tap into new revenue streams, synergies, and business models that harness added value from existing assets with minimal effort. This presents a great opportunity for companies in the space sector to promote and sell their data to other sectors and access new markets in other EU countries.
“Looking at the great many start-ups and entrepreneurs AZO has supported in its space-related programmes all over Europe, the Topio platform is highly relevant and can serve as an additional source of income. Any company that produces data can benefit from it. I also see huge potential in all the New Space companies that launch their own CubeSats and produce plenty of new data all the time; this platform can support them in selling their data to more users. Since space data isn’t bound by borders, it’s interesting for users from all over Europe. This is why we’re supporting the establishment of a pan-European marketplace for exploring, trading, and using geodata,” says Thorsten Rudolph, CEO of AZO Space of Innovation.
Early adopters wanted
At the moment, our partners are putting a lot of effort into developing the core technology of the Topio project. Beta operations for the marketplace will start in early 2021, and data owners will be able to participate free of charge for its first three years. Early users can take advantage of free hands-on training and onboarding. More details can be found at https://topio.market/.
About Topio
The Topio marketplace is being implemented as part of the Horizon 2020 project Opertus Mundi. AZO is supporting its establishment and heading up the innovation and communication activities as part of a consortium of 10 partners from six European countries. Thanks to the involvement of three innovation organisations; five geospatial asset owners, consumers, and value-added service providers; a legal firm; and an SME with expertise in UI/UX design for high-impact digital marketplaces, services, products, and communities, the success of this project is virtually guaranteed. To find out more about Topio, please visit www.opertusmundi.eu.
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