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GPS BAN REMOVED
BY SARAH MARQUER
In today’s rapidly developing world, new technological devices designed to improve everyday life for business and individual consumers flood international markets. Global positioning system (GPS) devices and related products, software and services are one such technology. Originally developed by the United States Department of Defense for military purposes, GPS technology is now used worldwide to assist and direct navigation in any form of transportation, and for land surveying, geo-marketing, and tracking and surveillance, all of which depend upon the availability of digital maps.
Individuals and companies in Egypt whose business depends on the sale of GPS technology were pleased to learn that the National Telecommunication Regulatory Authority (NTRA) legalized GPS technology on April 2. Despite the prohibition, Egypt’s government had been using GPS technology in its ambulances and railways. Certain actors in the tourism transport sector, such as Nile cruise ship operators and desert guides, were also relying on the technology.
The government banned the use of GPS technology in 2003, passing the Telecom Act (Law 10/2003) requiring companies and consumers to seek government approval before importing or making use of the technology. Ehab Tamemy, managing director at DotMap, a supplier of business mapping software and geographic information system (GIS) products, cites security reasons and a lack of knowledge about GPS technology as the primary reasons for the ban. “It was something new and most people are afraid of new technology,” says Tamemy. “Of course, for security reasons it [was also] a little bit risky.”
Hossan Ragheb, CEO of Protrac, a company specializing in GIS services including geo-marketing, which uses digitized geographical information to study trade channels that determine where products can best be sold, agrees with Tamemy. He believes that the NTRA and other concerned parties within the government had to consider the security risks associated with GPS technology, which can be used quite easily to locate individuals.
GIS technology and digital maps are especially needed by companies whose business involves distribution, argues Ragheb, whose clients include producers of fast-moving consumer goods (FMCGs) such as industry giants Coca-Cola, Proctor & Gamble and Unilever. Ragheb notes that “[for suppliers] to know where to sell the products... and where this outlet is, not only in terms of address, but the [demographics] of the area – [for example] how many people above 15 years [of age] are living in this area – gives them a sort of direction to know which products should go where.”
The ban had spurred the growth of a black market that resulted in losses for the suppliers of GPS technology and the government. Consumers, however, were able to bypass the restrictions. “Whoever wanted GPS [on their iPhone] found a way to get around the problem and unlocked it,” says Ahmed El-Gholmy, marketing manager at the Mohandiseen branch of Best Buy – Apple Premium Reseller. Consumers can now enjoy the benefits of warranties, after-sales help and lower prices.
Companies that distribute and sell GPS technology and related products and services should expect a surge in business in the coming years now that it has been lifted, says Mohamed Adel Yehia, who heads the GIS sector in the Chamber of Communication & Informatics at the Federation of Egyptian Industries. Both Yehia and Ragheb expect mobile handset sales to boom, but El-Ghomly is quick to explain that iPhone sales have yet to be affected. “When the ban was effective, the number of iPhones sold was the same as now,” he says, noting that the consumer market needs to become more aware of such technology and its uses before significant changes in sales are observed.
The legalization of GPS technology will provide a much awaited boost for companies such as DotMap and Protrac, enabling them to provide their customers with a wider set of services. The digital maps that they have been producing will be used for additional applications, such as navigation. Consequently, their maps will be in higher demand. Ragheb notes that since GPS has been legalized, “[Protrac is] much busier now. We have a lot to do to keep our maps [updated].”
Companies that wish to monitor routes taken by their employees, such as those in the banking and insurance sectors or those working in delivery and distribution, will also benefit. The utilization of GPS technology allows employers to track their employees, as well as decide upon the best route to reach a particular destination, rendering delivery and distribution efforts more efficient. “For the companies themselves, it will enable them to collect data in the field very easily, very quickly and very accurately,” says Tamemy.
Furthermore, the legalization of GPS technology will also benefit the government. In terms of regional relationships, for example, Yehia believes that Egypt can now work with other Arab countries, notably Saudi Arabia, Libya and Sudan, to synchronize and produce a digital map for the entire region. “Egypt will now be tied together [with other Arab countries] in one system,” says Yehia. This will be useful in cases of regional disasters that require coordination between neighboring countries, and will also assist commerce and trade. The government will also gain from the customs charged on the increased number of devices utilizing GPS technology now imported legally.
Despite the excitement over the legalization of this technology in Egypt, pending issues might impede the utilization and functionality of GPS here. Ragheb points to the process of making digital maps as the key issue. “To make navigable maps or accurate maps, [you have] to keep it fresh and updated in a country like Egypt where things change quite fast and are unannounced,” he says. In a city where directions of roads are changed without prior notification, accidents and problems on various roads and highways go unreported, and new shops and restaurants open unofficially, it will be difficult for companies such as DotMap and Protrac to update their maps as frequently as consumers might want; they must send their own technical experts out into the field to survey such changes and update their maps accordingly.
The quality of the maps is further complicated by the issue of translation and transliteration from Arabic to English and vice versa. However, attempts are being made to rectify this problematic aspect of GPS navigation in the region. “[DotMap] kept trying to make an engine [that would] know exactly how [anyone] could write the Arabic characters to English characters,” says Tamemy, who now claims that the company’s engine is 95 percent accurate.
The cost of these maps is also a significant barrier to the full-blown utilization of GPS technology. “These maps cost a lot [to make] so we sell them for a huge amount of money. Here’s an example: Cairo street maps, we [DotMap] sell them for around $10,000. If you are going to buy a GPS [navigation device] worth around $500, you cannot actually [be expected to] pay $10,000 for the maps,” says Tamemy. The maps have been expensive, at least until recently, as they could only be used in a limited way; there was not enough demand for the maps to render them more affordable. However, Tamemy believes this will change as GPS technology is increasingly utilized in Egypt. The more GPS technology is used by companies and consumers, he notes, the less costly these maps will become as map makers sell more of them.
Within a year’s time, Ragheb and Tamemy believe, GPS technology will be increasingly understood by a larger number of consumers and businesses, making its applications more feasible. However, this will depend on improving the map-making process, Tamemy stresses. Without further development of digital maps of Egypt, GPS technology will be handicapped here, he explains, and the numerous applications of GPS technology will not be realized.
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