Data Quality

California has revised its proposed "Pay As You Drive" insurance regulations. A full copy of the regulations can be found here.

Vector One has an article on the growing importance of spatial data quality that is a worthwhile read for both lawyers and policymakers.

According to a post on Techblog86, China is "investigating" maps. Matters being investigated include: maps being produced without a license, maps that contain sensitive information - such as military facilities - as well as maps that fail to include territories that officially belong to the PRC. A recent post from Ogle Earth is a good example as to how and why this can be such an important issue.

An article from a few months ago concerning how some citizens in one Arkansas county learned suddenly learned that their property is located in a flood zone; at least according to updated FEMA maps.

http://nwanews.com/bcdr/News/61202/

I am sure you have noticed the number of television commercials involving GPS devices during the holiday season. I find the one of a ribbon cutting for a new bridge the most intriguing. Immediately following the cutting of the ribbon - a matter of a second or two - a couple with a GPS device in their car drives by and then over the bridge.

Clearly the intent of the commercial is to show that even though the bridge had just opened, it had already been loaded onto the GPS device and made available to the customer; the company is advertising the timeliness and accuracy of its spatial data. I wonder, however, if the company is not creating an expectation for consumers that cannot be met -- and which could be used against them in future litigation.