Saturday, November 19, 2011

Legal and Policy Framework for a 'Location-enabled' Economy

I have been giving some thought as to the fundamental elements of a legal and policy framework necessary for the development of a 'location-enabled' economy. For purposes of this post, I am defining a 'location-enabled' economy as one that allows the full potential of geospatial technologies to be realized while addressing legitimate concerns, such as privacy.  In my opinion, nations that develop such a framework will be better suited for economic growth, high quality government services, increased public safety and homeland security and protecting natural resources. In addition, these nations will be the leaders in addressing transnational issues such as climate change. Thus far, I have come up with the following (in no particular order):

1. Laws, regulations and policies with respect to the collection, use and transfer of geospatial data are clear and transpartent;

2. Any regulations that restrict the collection of geospatial data - of any type - are narrowly-tailored to address specific and articulable concerns, rather than broadly defined so as to address any potential risk;

3. Due to its unique qualities, geolocation information is protected for privacy purposes differently than information such as social security numbers, financial information or medical records;

4. Government agencies make government data (or Public Sector Information (PSI)) broadly available at minimal or no cost;

5. Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) in geospatial data are clear, widely understood and when appropriate, adequately protected;

6. Geospatial technology is treated the same as other types of technology;

7. There are no restrictions on the import and/or export of geospatial data;

8. There are no restrictions on the availability of information on the internet;

9. Individuals are adequately protected from government's using geospatial surveillance technology; and

10.Laws and policies encourage the use of industry standards that promote interoperability.
 
This list is still a work in progress. Therefore, please let me know if there are any items you would suggest adding or removing from this list.

Thursday, November 10, 2011

The Spatial Law and Policy Update


The Spatial Law and Policy Update:
Raising Awareness of Where Geospatial Technology Is Taking the Law 


Privacy
AccuWeather App Stalks HTC Users (Directions Magazine)

Intellectual Property

National Security/Law Enforcement

Judges Weigh Phone Tracking (Wall Street Journal)
Data Quality/Liability

UAVs
U.S. Tightens Drone Rules (Wall Street Journal)

Satellite Navigation

Spatial Data Infrastructures

Miscellaneous

Thursday, November 3, 2011

The Spatial Law and Policy Update (November 2, 2011)


Raising Awareness of Where Geospatial Technology Is Taking the Law


Privacy

AccuWeather App Stalks HTC Users (Directions Magazine)

Intellectual Property


National Security/Homeland Security
Satellite Navigation Systems
Spatial Data Infrastructures
UAV's
Miscellaneous
When Maps Shouldn’t Be Maps (Matthew Ericson)