GiS, GIs and gIS

What we now see is that the "G" is fading out and becoming mainstream in many systems…The whole of GIS now centers around and enterprise architecture. We also believe that the value is in data; data accuracy and data completeness as we move forward…Enterprises face a greater need to understand location. GIS is therefore is no longer a complex technology of domain specialists…GIS is now demonstrating its value across the enterprise," says Mr. B.V.R. Mohan Reddy, Chairman, Infotech Enterprises Ltd. one of the largest geospatial outsourcing companies in the world (and traded on the National Stock Exchange of India and the Stock Exchange, Mumbai).

Reddy had an interesting perspective on GIS. I’m paraphrasing but he said that in the 80’s the "geographic" and "system" aspects of GIS were most prominent referring to an emphasis on the marriage of hardware to software. In the 90’s, geographic information was key as organizations looked to capture and process data; and now in the 2000’s, geography is being de-emphasized and replaced by "information systems" as location technology becomes better integrated with mainstream IT. I couldn’t agree more.

Reddy says that "GIS is becoming a service because of these standards and interoperability." Others at the conference believe that it is inevitable that GIS will transition to become purely a web service.