Core is creating a one-stop Internet marketplace. The company has acquired rights to archive and sell high-resolution images taken by West Indian Space, the Israeli venture that plans to launch this year. Usher believes satellite imagery, easily accessible on the Web and enhanced with software, will become an empowering tool. Retailers scouting for locations can count cars in shopping center parking lots and, if they wish, compare income data for different areas. Telecommunications companies can track growth patterns to see where they want to install networks.
Underwriters can get a better look at floodplains before quoting a price for insurance.
And one day, Usher believes, the navigation unit in his Lexus will display a real picture instead of a map. Rye also is upbeat about the opportunities offered by the Internet. I didn't think a few years ago that we would be able to allow a customer that comes to our Web site to downlink a one-meter image in real time. We're talking a lot of pixels, a lot of bits that have to be delivered, and the pipes have to be big enough to deliver the picture. But that capability is coming online now.