Legal Challenges to a Geospatial Business
Kevin D. Pomfret
Mr.
CantorArkema, P.C.,
Email: kpomfret@cantorarkema.com
The continued growth of the geospatial industry will depend upon a number of challenges. One of the most significant of these will be dealing with complex, national and transnational legal issues. These issues include national security, privacy, intellectual property rights (including data ownership) and potential liability.
As a former satellite imagery analyst who currently advises companies on a variety of business and legal matters, my presentation will discuss how these issues will affect businesses that collect, process, analyze and/or distribute geospatial data. More importantly, I will also offer practical solutions on how companies may deal with these issues in their business operations. My suggestions will be based upon my knowledge of the technology and the industry, as well as my experience with companies in other industries that have similar legal issues.
For example, with respect to national security and privacy, I will discuss the various legal regimes that relate to these issues. I will address the international regime for the collection of geospatial data, as well as specific national laws, in the United States, Europe and Asia with respect to national security and privacy. I will also explain the concept of a Spatial Data Security Program to protect sensitive spatial data from criminals and terrorists.
Intellectual property rights (IPR) vary across the globe, particularly with respect to data. I will outline some of the legal issues associated with licensing from a various data sources. I will also discuss the components of a data license and unique terms that should be considered in a geospatial data license.
All businesses must adequately deal with the potential of lawsuits. With respect to liability, I will discuss potential claims that may arise from geospatial data - including implied and express warranties. I will also discuss how businesses can mitigate the risk of lawsuits through the use of allocating risk in contracts with vendors and customers and with insurance