Andre Yoskowitz
11 Jun 2014 21:05
Google has kept its acquisition trend going, purchasing the satellite imagery company Skybox Imaging for half a billion.
The search giant says Skybox's "satellites will help keep Google Maps accurate with up-to-date imagery. Over time, we also hope that Skybox's team and technology will be able to help improve Internet access and disaster relief -- areas Google has long been interested in."
Skybox added a bit more to their press release:
Five years ago, we began the Skybox journey to revolutionize access to information about the changes happening across the surface of the Earth.
We've made great strides in the pursuit of that vision.
We've built and launched the world's smallest high-resolution imaging satellite, which collects beautiful and useful images and video every day. We have built an incredible team and empowered them to push the state-of-the-art in imaging to new heights. The time is right to join a company who can challenge us to think even bigger and bolder, and who can support us in accelerating our ambitious vision.
Skybox and Google share more than just a zip code. We both believe in making information (especially accurate geospatial information) accessible and useful. And to do this, we're both willing to tackle problems head on -- whether it's building cars that drive themselves or designing our own satellites from scratch.