The number of OGC members in Europe now exceeds the number of members in North America or any other world region. European companies, agencies, research centers and universities have played and continue to play a critical role in the development, product implementation, and market adoption of OGC standards.
OGC European forums, interest groups and project activities work to:
- Promote the development and use of advanced open systems standards and techniques to enable the full integration of geospatial data and geoprocessing resources into mainstream computing and widespread use of interoperable, commercial geoprocessing software throughout the global information infrastructure.
- Represent the European-based membership of OGC in membership organisations/associations in Europe with similar vision and mission to that of the OGC, including agencies, collaborators and affiliates of the European Commission.
OGC's European activities address the following general business objectives:
- Promote interoperable geoprocessing in Europe based on OGC's standards and principles for architecture, OpenGIS Specifications, and on software engineering development processes that use standards-based, commercial-off-the-shelf (SCOTS) products.
- Assist European organisations in supporting, monitoring and managing programs where interoperability is a focus or an inherent requirement.
- Facilitate enhancement of OpenGIS specifications by identifying requirements and recruiting initiative sponsors and participants from Europe for OGC activities including global test beds and pilots and specification working groups.
In Europe, the Open Geospatial Consortium (Europe) Limited (OGCE) was formed in 2001. It is organized and operated as a non-stock, not for profit company limited by guarantee under The Companies Act 1985 of England and Wales and is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Open Geospatial Consortium, Inc. OGCE's purpose is to support business in Europe on behalf of OGC's mission, goals and objectives, as required in various situations. However, most activities among OGC members in Europe do not directly involve OGCE.
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