Good News for GeoEye: Google Exclusive Deal for High Res GeoEye 1 Imagery

The news popped Thursday night. Of course the bird is not in the sky yet (it launches next week) and the imagery won’t be available for another 45- 60 days. But after that assuming all is well with the satellite and receiving stations, Google will add .5 meter (corrected was: .41 meter; corrected per direct communication from Google and comment) to Google Maps and Google Earth.

No word on the price tag, but it should be a good deal: the deal stipulates the imagery not go to any other on-line mapping websites. And, if it matters, Google’s logo is on the rocket.

- Reuters

Sprint to Offer Localized Services via WiMAX - including Autodesk LS

Sprint’s OHMTM WiMAX mobile broadband is poised to launch in Baltimore in September year. It’s high speed wireless, basically, but, it “will be largely location-centric,” explained Rick Robinson, vice president of XOHM Services. “We’re creating a new dimension to online presence, making points of interest near your current location easy to identify and access. This ‘geobrowsing’ effect provides location context and will give XOHM members a richer personal broadband experience when they’re mobile.”

I read this as: this service is more “LBS-y” than say your iPhone with AT&T service. Perhaps; for now the list of app and platform providers is quite familiar: uLocate, Yelp, Accuweather, OpenWave, Google… One is a surprise to me:

Autodesk Inc. of San Rafael, Calif., will provide a standards-based interface and geospatial services, such as addresses, ZIP code and city/state information, to enhance location within the XOHM network.

I think that means the Autodesk Location Services platform will be available for developers. We’ve not heard much from Autodesk’s LBS corner for a while, so this is good news.

- press release

Clever marketing from “Navtec”

I was minding my own business doing some news searches this morning when a sponsored ad appeared next to my Google search.

Navtec? That’s not how you spell it! It’s now NAVTEQ but back in the day was NAVTECH. Must be some scammer playing on the name to get folks to buy their… Ooops. The link takes one to navigation.com, the URL NAVTEQ has for its map update store.

I’m so naive.

Next Phase of GPS-based Mobile Gaming?

Despite all the hoopla, GPS-enabled mobile games have not exploded. But Wayfinder, a GPS services provider, says the time has come and they will enable the great games. How? By providing an API to their gaming platform to forum members on September 30.

- TechRadar
- press release

Predications/Insights from Jeff Holden, the CEO of Pelago (Whrrl)

[on the future] - One is that Amazon ( NSDQ: AMZN) will become a hardware company and the second is something he’s banking on?that Apple’s ( NSDQ: AAPL) iPhone will evolve from a niche device to one that gains double-digit market share.

- [on what distinguishes Whrrl] “Foot-streaming” is the reason why Holden believes that they can demand high rates for their ads. Foot-streaming is the act of tracking where people go using GPS: “You are able to say people?who go to these places?also go to these places.” Sound familiar? Amazon does that all the time, by showing people what other people buy when they buy a particular book. “This has never been done in the physical world.”

- [on competitors] Loopt is like candy because you can see where your friends are, and with Yelp, likely only 1 percent of the audience is really engaged, he says.

- mocoNews.net