Business Model
Similar in concept to the non-profit business model used by several large educational institutions to bring the potential financial value of academic research and discoveries back to the respective school, SharedGeo has been set up to allow the value of inventive products and processes created by geospatial personnel working in the public sector to be captured, amplified with donations, and then cycled back to public sector geospatial community for the greater good. In effect, one dollar in income or donation becomes amplified many times over as the flow of money back to the public sector creates further inventive efforts and subsequent income stream that accelerates the cycle. Within this business model, SharedGeo also seeks to invent, expand and distribute open source geospatial software and support in a way that facilitates access for communities and professions where cost is a deterrent.
For a long running example of this process in action, please visit the web site of the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation.