Commercial Development Restructuring

Back to: Commercial Development

Reasons for change

1. Standing Committees are supposed to have "standing" because they serve all ESIPs.
2. The Commercial Development Standing Committee was serving a small number of commercial ESIPs with the hope that this would serve to benefit all ESIPs. The original activities included developing an ecommerce section on the esipfed.org site. This was of interest to non-commercial ESIPs as a tool to reimburse the expense of delivering discs and maintaining user service personnel.
3. The proposed changes are in response to low participation in the Standing Committee with the hope that expanded activities will have broader interest.

Original Bylaw

Section 5: Standing Committee for Commercial Development

V.5.1 The ESIP Federation shall include a Standing Committee for Commercial Development. Its purpose is to foster commercial development of Earth science information. Its roles are:

a. To explore mutually beneficial activities with commercial providers of Earth science data, products, and services;

b. To provide ESIP partners with resources that will facilitate the development of commercially valuable products;

c. To develop organizational models and practices that will bridge between individual ESIP partner institutions, in order to facilitate the transfer of technology into the commercial for-profit sector;

d. To encourage and stimulate the development of the commercial activities of its partners and to encourage and stimulate the broader environmental informational economy.

Proposed

Section 5: Standing Committee for Economic Development

The ESIP Federation shall include a Standing Committee for Economic Development. Its purpose is to foster improvements in all economic aspects of Earth science. Its roles are:

a. To explore mutually beneficial activities with commercial providers of Earth science data, products, and services;

b. To provide ESIPs with resources that will facilitate the development of commercially valuable products;

c. To explore issues concerning intellectual property and provide advice to individual ESIPs and the Earth Science community at large;

d. To develop and implement economic models and practices that will bridge between individual ESIP partner institutions in order to sustain and grow Earth science through the transfer of its products and services into the commercial, academic, and government sectors;

e. To encourage and stimulate the activities of its Partners by working to stimulate the broader environmental information economy.

Detailed Discussion

(Please insert comments below.)

1. I wanted to refocus the Committee on broader issues to increase the amount of money available to the Federation and its Partners. A major issue is the new Section c concerning "intellectual property". HowardBurrows 11:42, 25 July 2006 (EDT)