14 October 2011
In his recent Forbes magazine article – “Location Intelligence – The Future Looks Bright” – journalist Steve Milton outlines the explosion in location intelligence.
Milton explains the appeal quite clearly: the ability to analyse geospatial data by combining the well-accepted domain of traditional business intelligence (BI) analysis, with GIS technology. He attributes the uptake of location intelligence to recent advances in content collection and data processing.
We’d suggest that there’s one additional factor that Milton has overlooked: the rise in Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) delivery for location intelligence software.
As our own experience has shown, more and more organisations are interested in exploring location intelligence. But while there is genuine interest in the results that the technology can produce, there is a decided lack of interest in the traditional setup involved.
Put simply, organisations interested in location intelligence are willing to take a chance – but a chance with very little risk of failure. They’re not interested in investing in hardware and staff – or waiting for months while a project gets up and running.
Instead, these organisations want a quick, cheap solution. They still expect full functionality and the very best help and support – but in a few days, and at less than a fraction of the price.
In our opinion, the real success of location intelligence will come from a combination of growing interest, technological advances, and the ability to deliver the technology to users quickly and inexpensively.
We question the current commitment of the wider geospatial industry to embrace the new, exciting world of SaaS-based location intelligence technology. But we hope that vendors like us will continue to take the brave steps that have begun to transform the industry.
