WIREDGOV

Ordnance Survey, Britain’s national mapping agency, is introducing a new way to deliver location information on demand to government and commercial users anywhere in the country.

OS On Demand is a web map service that hosts and supplies the latest and most accurate raster mapping of anywhere in Britain directly from Ordnance Survey via the Web. By offering the data directly to a customer’s desktop, Ordnance Survey is offering a quick and easy way to view and work online with mapping, in addition to data delivered on CD-ROM or DVD.

Geographic information is becoming increasingly recognised as a powerful decision-making tool in applications as diverse as local government policymaking, utility asset management and flood-risk analysis. Ordnance Survey believes that by making it possible to access its data simply as and when it’s required, users will be able to make even greater use of the service.

Because OS On Demand is designed to open web service standards, the data can easily be incorporated to any application quickly and with minimum costs.  For example, OS On Demand can be used within an organisation’s own Intranet pages, ensuring that everyone has access to, and is using, the same data.

Licensees can access the mapping anywhere with an Internet connection, allowing for a complete range of mapping data to be called up instantly to create instant visual context to whatever detail is required.

The service contains Great Britain coverage for:

• OS MasterMap Topography Layer (in a raster format)
• OS Street View
• 1:10 000 Scale Raster
• 1:25 000 Scale Colour Raster
• 1:50 000 Scale Colour Raster
• 1:250 000 Scale Colour Raster
• MiniScale
• An overview map of Great Britain

The service is available from October for use by existing direct customers or Licensed Partners for use with commercial activity under the appropriate licences.

Julian Cooper, Web Services Development Manager at Ordnance Survey, says: “We’re excited to be offering our partners and customers the OS On Demand web map service. It’s a really flexible and affordable additional investment for our customers and will give them more options for accessing and using the very latest Ordnance Survey mapping, including a raster view of OS MasterMap Topography Layer

“I would like to thank our partner community for working with us to ensure the service is fully compliant to Open Geospatial Consortium standards; also our Supplier Partner Infotech in working with us to develop the hosting service.”

Email: rob.andrews@ordnancesurvey.co.uk

Phone: (+44) 023 8079 2265

Senior Communications & PR Officer - Paul Beauchamp

Email: paul.beauchamp@ordnancesurvey.co.uk

Phone: (+44) 023 8079 2568

Press Office fax: (+44) 023 8030 5295