Business

Will the UK be cut out of the EU’s €10B Galileo project?

In the days before GPS, for any family or couple that have taken a long road trip together, across unknown land and along winding roads, it is fair to assume that a heated argument regarding where to go, or who missed the right turning has probably broken out at some point. GPS has become a crucial part of our everyday lives, even if its just to ask Siri to direct us to the nearest Starbucks.

Across Europe, numerous countries can look forward to good news and greater navigational technology thanks to the EU’s €10 billion Galileo project. The project will provide encrypted mapping and navigation data through the use of 30 satellites, which will provide an alternative to the US-controlled Global Positioning System (GPS).

However, unfortunately for the UK, the island country might not be able to enjoy unrestricted access to this new technology due to the recent decision to leave the EU, reports the Financial Times.

The Commission believes the UK can’t be involved with the Galileo project until a security agreement with the EU has been finalized. This is due to the highly sensitive information the project will be involved with. Like GPS, Galileo satellites will produce navigation and mapping data for millions of devices, including consumer products and military craft.

We spoke with Viktor Bielko, Head of Product Development at Sygic, a GPS navigation system equipped with offline stored maps, real-time traffic information, speed limit warnings, head-up display, gas prices, and many other features, who stated “From the point of view of navigation app developer, Sygic welcomes any satellite positioning system that becomes available to public. With new systems like Galileo, the electronic devices used by the public can benefit from more precise location. Latest models of smartphones combine the positioning signal from all three systems (European Galileo, American GPS and Russian GLONASS), meaning that the position error is max 2-3 meters, compared to 10-20 if only one system would be used.”

“For users of Sygic navigation, this is crucial – to know the exact position of a vehicle within street crossing, to give correct navigation instruction at the right time. In addition, there is the security point of view – if some of the positioning systems are “turned off” because of a military conflict, the Galileo would remain turned on for the public, and drivers will not get lost,” he adds.

Ultimately, the new addition of Galileo will bring more service to a growing number of users across Europe, even if many of those users won’t be from the UK.

Sam Brake Guia

Sam is an energetic and passionate writer/presenter, always looking for the next adventure. In August 2016 he donated all of his possessions to charity, quit his job, and left the UK. Since then he has been on the road travelling through North, Central and South America searching for new adventures and amazing stories.

Recent Posts

The UK’s push to be a relevant global hub for space technology

Despite lagging behind global space powers like the United States, Russia and China, the United…

3 days ago

US spy community is creating a portal to buy, access your personal data

The Intelligence Community is setting up a one-stop shop, icdata.gov, to buy access to your…

4 days ago

The gaming startup market in Mexico: Opportunities and challenges

The vibrant world of tech startups has found a space carved out for growth and…

4 days ago

As data center demand drives uptick in demand for electricity, AEP and Think Power Solutions focus on AI-enabled utility infrastructure 

Despite the recent volatility seen in the markets, American Electric Power (AEP), one of the…

4 days ago

Building a competitive edge with cloud-native MFTs

The ever-present threat of cybercrime is expected to come with an eye-watering price tag of…

4 days ago

Stefanini Group Accelerates Cloud Expansion with 60% Stake in Escala 24×7, AWS Premier Partner in LATAM

Latin America's cloud adoption is surging. According to recent reports by Gartner and IDC, by…

1 week ago