Interoperable open map data greatly strengthens web-based mapping services by enhancing their ability to enable the end users to accurately visualize geospatial data. Recently a new collaborative effort to develop interoperable open map data as a shared asset was announced with the formation of the Overture Maps Foundation by the Linux Foundation, a global nonprofit organization enabling innovation through open source. The initiative was founded by Amazon Web Services (AWS), Meta, Microsoft, and TomTom and is open to all communities with a common interest in building open map data.
The growing need for mapping services
The present times have witnessed a steadily growing need to enhance mapping services to tap the location intelligence data acquired. Whether one is adjusting to the “new normal” or just striving to identify new avenues for future growth, there’s never been a better time to refresh and imbibe the mapping intelligence offered by the wide range of geospatial tools to prepare for what’s next by assuming the most resilient version of oneself.
So the overall demands on maps are growing at an accelerating rate and the users’ expectations from the maps are escalating too. Accuracy of data, updated real time information and a holistic approach is what is being asked for today from all mapping initiatives. Simultaneously the application of mapping data is also widening to encompass a larger area of interest.
The Overture Map initiative is a very important addition to the mapping community. An Overture Maps Foundation member spokesperson shared in an exclusive conversation with Geospatial World “one of the founding premises of Overture is that the way to build a complete map is through collaboration. The way to do that is by making it an open shared asset. That way what you can get, is a community of people who are not only using the map, but also contributing feedback on what the world looks like right now and that can be incorporated back into the map to build a very complete map.”
The growing trend of Open Map initiatives
In recent times the Open Street Map (OSM) has gained much popularity and is a valuable project as it offers a free editable map of the whole world, crowd sourced and made by common people like me and you. OSM is being built by a local community of mappers who are mapping their area and all their combined effort would build a real map of the world.
The Overture Maps initiative is an exciting new announcement which is geared towards a different audience. The Overture Map Foundation spokesperson shared that “Overture audience are the organizations or companies that build and provide map services.” He further highlighted that “Overture would use the data from open street bound and combine it with other types of map data. For instance, we combine with Artificial Intelligence Machine Learning detections. We would also combine the data with local or federal government data which are more authoritative in nature.”
Today there is definitely a need for different sources of data to be brought together, quality checked, and then organized in a structure that can be suitably used by the targeted audience. “Overture is really aimed at the people who are going to offer map services and will combine a variety of sources, and add quality, validation and structure to that data so that those people can use it” pointed out the Foundation spokesperson in his conversation with Geospatial World.
Geospatial data being used by government organizations
Governments at several levels and geographies today are generating great amounts of geospatial information, and slowly that data is becoming accessible and being made open. “Overture is aiming to use that open data and integrate it into a bigger worldwide map data set which can then be used by billions of people through all sorts of services” shared the Foundation spokesperson. In this context he also opined that “ultimately the goal of governments opening up their map data is for it to be used effectively.” The Overture initiative would certainly aid in this goal.
Overture is a global initiative
Overture is open to all industries, all sectors, and all countries. The Foundation looks forward to invite the participation of companies or governments in any region of the world who would want to join and contribute in this initiative to make the maps of their parts of the world become more effective and have a better usage. The Foundation does not want to focus on only North America or Europe or any specific region.
Historic funding of American infrastructure by The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA)
The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), has become the most talked about topic in the infrastructure community in US with its commitment for the historic amount of USD 1.2 trillion in investments to improve America’s ageing infrastructure. The key question arises on what would be the most efficient strategy to disseminate this funding to meet the desired objective. Geospatial tools and innovative mapping initiatives would certainly be integral for infrastructure refurbishment and innovation projects.
The Overture Foundation spokesperson added in that “map data is supposed to be a digital reflection of what actually exists on the ground.” He shared that the initiative can “give a platform where those data sets can be registered and can work together.”
Mapping a sustainable approach
‘Sustainability’, has become a strong area of global focus today. Geospatial innovations are increasingly promoting a sustainable approach for the global community with their industry offerings.
“Overture is aimed at a wide range of mapping applications ranging from government and environmental concerns through its commercial applications” shared the Foundation spokesperson. He continued that “the biggest thing about climate change is that it demands a need for very dynamic maps. It calls for maps that continually evolve and are updated as the world changes. Our belief is that , Overture is going to be the best map in the world where the data is used by most people.” He added in “for climate change related events and resultant emergency disaster response, the need today is for a map that is really up-to-date. I think part of what we’re hoping to build is, by building a big community, we can build a big flywheel of data so that as the world changes, the map changes with it.”
The road ahead for the Overture initiative
Overture expects to release its first datasets in the first half of 2023. Initially, this release will include basic layers including buildings, road, and administrative information. To support next-generation map products, Overture will steadily improve the coverage, resolution and accuracy of existing data, as well as introduce new layers such as places, routing or 3D building data.
The geospatial community eagerly looks forward to the release of the Overture initiative.
Also Read: Linux Foundation Opens New Open Map Data Foundation
