CARTO has always been a data-driven company. So, when data pointed out that almost 50% of all business in the geospatial industry comes from professional services, the location intelligence platform provider knew it had to step-up its consulting game.
What CARTO needed was a team with a solid and successful track record in geospatial consulting. And given its robust partner ecosystem, CARTO did not have to look too far. On May 29, CARTO acquired Spain-based Geographica – a geospatial consulting company which brings with itself 12 years of rich experience and clients like Mastercard, Vodafone, and Telefonica.
Despite the huge demand, geospatial industry analysts believe that users have a hard time zeroing down on providers of technically-advanced and reliable professional services. According to Luiz Sanz, CARTO CEO, “A growing number of multinationals need geospatial skills applied to their business problems, yet there is only so much geospatial talent out there.”
With this acquisition, CARTO plans to roll out new and unique services programs, which will be built atop of its location intelligence platform, to show enterprise users how they can use spatial analytics to solve complex business problems. Spatial modeling and machine learning will play an important part in the new solution sets.
Assuring that on a technical, professional, and service level, nothing will change for the existing clients of Geographica, Héctor García, Co-CEO of Geographica, says, “We are very happy and excited for this new stage. A formidable, honest and hardworking team has been formed. Together, we have unique data and a capacity for unparalleled analysis which will solve very specific present and future business problems for companies around the world.”
The entire Geographica team will join CARTO from their headquarters in Seville, Spain.
Watch the video below to learn more about the synergies CARTO and Geographica will bring to the world of geospatial professional services:
#Business
Next article
Apple has announced that it will be driving across Canada throughout the summer to capture road details, signage and landmarks. It is carrying out this task to bring in more accuracy and usefulness to Apple Maps. The location data collected by sensors will be worked upon by Apple’s teams in Cupertino, California.
Following the not so satisfying outcomes, Apple is already in the process of rebuilding its Maps. The hurdles have been many so far – A first bad impression, an apology from the CEO, and likewise attempts to improvise- patching holes with data partnerships, bringing in transit navigation etc. Due to the limitations, Apple Maps has still not been able to qualify as a world-class service.
To stand out as a strong competition to Google Maps, Apple Maps need to bring in more improvements in its location data. It needs to be re-build and the decision to map the streets of Canada could be a significant step in this direction. Apple admits using the data collected to build better features in Apple Maps such as a Google Street View competitor, cycling directions and/or turn-by-turn directions using augmented reality.
Apple Maps cars are equipped with a GPS rig, four LiDAR arrays and eight cameras shooting high-resolution images. The data captured through such high-level equipment is more than likely to get used for high-grade features in the future.
We are not sure how much of the entire operation Apple was inclined to reveal, but with so many Apple Maps cars on the roads of Canada, it would not have stayed a secret. We just hope Apple Maps become more accurate and useful after the project gets completed.
