14 DAY TRIAL // Google is very interested in the enterprise market but, so far it hasn't been exploring too many possibilities. It has Google Apps and a few other specialized tools, but that's about it. Now though it's expanding and leveraging its comprehensive mapping tools and data to offer Google Earth Builder, a cloud-based service for those processing a lot of geospacial data.
"In the enterprise a lot of geospatial data remains trapped on costly servers and inaccessible to those who need it," Tarun Bhatnagar, Head of Geo Enterprise Sales at Google, wrote.
"We’d like to help free that data and bring the same benefits that consumers have enjoyed for years to businesses and government agencies," he said.
"So we created Google Earth Builder. It lets you upload, process and store your geospatial data in our cloud. Your employees can use familiar tools - Google Maps and Google Earth - to easily and securely share and publish mapping data. No technical expertise or GIS training is required," he explained.
Google Earth Builder makes use of the tools and data Google already had at its disposal, the Google Maps and Earth technology, and its powerful infrastructure.
Google touts the benefits of Earth Builder for enterprises and organizations which, coincidentally or not, are mostly the same as the benefits of any cloud platform.
Employees and associates can access the data from any device anywhere in the world and don't have to worry about software updates, incompatibilities and so on.
Enterprises also don't have to spend huge amounts of money on specialized hardware to run the applications and store the data. What's more, they can easily scale their cloud infrastructure if they need more computing power or storage space.
Google already has a number of mapping tools aimed at enterprises, including the Maps API premier, Google Earth Pro and Google Earth for Enterprises. Google Earth Builder though is a pure cloud solution and is much more comprehensive.