Company: Daratech, Inc.
Industry: Business GIS
Location: Cambridge, MA, United States of America

Cambridge, MA-- Daratech, Inc.forecasts total GIS core-business revenue to top $2.02 billion in 2004, an increase of 9.7% over 2003.In 2003, core GIS revenue reached $1.84 billion, up 5.1%, by Daratech estimates.Core-business revenue includes software, hardware, services and data products.

Of core-business revenue, Software accounted for the lion's share, comprising approximately two-thirds (64%) of the pie, with revenues from GIS software vendors reaching $1.175 billion.Environmental Systems Research Institute, Inc.(ESRI) and Intergraph Corporation led the market in 2003, accounting for nearly half of the industry's total software revenues.Other software leaders in 2003 included Autodesk, Inc., IBM's GIS Business Unit, GE Energy, Leica Geosystems, and MapInfo Corporation.

Services were the second-largest component, accounting for 24% of total core-business revenues, or $447 million.Hardware, a declining component of core-business revenues for many years, accounted for just 4% of total core-business revenues in 2003, or $70 million.Data products accounted for 8% of total core-business revenues.

Industries in the regulated sector of the GIS market accounted for close to half (44%) of total GIS core-business revenues in 2003, or an estimated $815 million.By comparison, the public sector accounted for just over one-fourth (29%) of total revenue, or $533 million, while the private sector contributed 24%, or $437 million.

Daratech Moves to Geospatial
Daratech has studied and written about the geographic information systems (or GIS) market for fifteen years.We've followed the evolution of GIS from large databases of mapping data stored on a mainframe, accessible by a few highly trained specialists, to a distributed network of specialized databases tied together and made accessible to unlimited numbers of people via the Internet.The old GIS term no longer encompasses all of the tools and technologies used in this more modern world.In essence, "geospatial" is "geographic information systems" brought into the new millennium.

Definitions are a tricky thing.The definition of a term can change as its usage evolves, until the term's meaning has changed without anyone noticing.But we'd like to maintain a very specific definition of "GIS:"

A geographic information system (GIS) is a computerized database management system used for capture, storage, retrieval, manipulation, analysis and display of spatial (or locationally defined) data.

-and propose the following definition for geospatial technologies:

Geospatial data identifies the geographic location and characteristics of natural or man-made features and boundaries on the earth.This information is gathered from remote sensing, mapping, and surveying and other technologies.Geospatial technologies capture, store, manage, integrate, displays, analyze and otherwise assist in the interpretation of this data in its entire context for better decision-making.

This broader definition recognizes that engineering data from CAD systems, billing information from ERP systems, facilities management and many other types of enterprise content must be brought together with the traditional spatial data from a GIS in order to efficiently make decisions.

We look forward to expanding our coverage of geospatial technologies in the coming years, and value your input.Please email us at geospatial@daratech.com to share your comments and insights.

In-depth analysis of the structure and composition of the GIS market, a detailed description of Daratech's GIS market model, profiles of major core-business participants and their product lines, and other background information is available in the just-released publication "2004 GIS Markets and Opportunities." The report is available in an online or hardcopy format.For information contact Sue Churchill, Daratech, Inc., tel.(+1) 617.354.2339, ext.2601, email sue@daratech.com, or visit www.daratech.com/research/gis/2004/.

About Daratech
Daratech, Inc.is a leading provider of information technology market research and technology assessment, advisory and strategic consulting services, and executive-level conferences for manufacturing, engineering, construction and plant operations.Established in 1979, Daratech specializes in PLM, CAD/CAM, digital product simulation (CAE), PDM/EDM, AECO PLM (architecture, engineering, construction, operations, plant lifecycle management), document/enterprise content management, GIS and related areas.

This release is revised and updated on an ongoing basis to reflect changing market conditions.Also, while Daratech adheres to the highest standards of care and due diligence in gathering and reporting information, it is impossible to guarantee that inaccurate, incomplete or ambiguous statements were not inadvertently included in this release.Before publishing this release, please phone Daratech at (+1) 617.354.2339 to be sure you are working with the latest version, and to receive any corrections or amplifications that have been made since this release was issued.]

Daratech, Inc., 255 Bent Street, Cambridge, MA 02141-2001, USA Phone: (+1) 617-354-2339 · Fax: (+1) 617-354-7822 © Copyright 2004 Daratech, Inc.All rights reserved.

Tim Hickey (tim@daratech.com)
Phone: 617-354-2339