Esri Inks Deal to Provide ArcGIS Users Access to China’s Imagery Data; Zhigang Li Comments

Esri and the National Geomatics Center of China have signed an agreement that aims to expand access to China’s cartographic maps and imagery data through Esri’s ArcGIS mapping platform.

Esri said Tuesday ArcGIS system users outside China will now have access to China’s geodata at no additional cost.

“The agreement will facilitate the scientific and technological communication between agencies by sharing geographic information and services over the web in the Asia Pacific Region,” said Zhigang Li, chief engineer at the National Administration of Surveying, Mapping and Geoinformation of China.

“NGCC hopes this joint work is able to promote regional, even global, promotion of spatial data.”

Esri said it will start offering China’s geographic data web services to ArcGIS platform users in the third quarter of 2016.

NGCC is a government agency under NASG that oversees data used in mapping and surveying projects in China.