15 April 2014 – Do you have a brilliant idea that uses satellite navigation technology? The European Satellite Navigation Competition (ESNC) is looking for individuals, teams or companies with ground-breaking ideas in applying positioning, navigation or timing technology, to rapidly accelerate their ideas into successful businesses.
Whether it’s an app, software platform or new piece of technology, the ESNC can connect you with a world-class network and provide expert business mentoring with guidance in protecting Intellectual Property (IP), refining your business model and maximising investor appeal.
The UK leg of the Europe-wide competition is now open for submissions; home grown innovators have achieved outstanding success in the competition, winning the overall European prize twice in the past 10 years, and placing in the top 5 every year we’ve entered.
“Winning the UK leg of the European Satellite Navigation Competition transformed our business”, says iGeolise Co-Founder and Director, Peter Lilley. His company helps customers search for services and places using time rather than distance, and works with major organisations including the UK’s largest estate agency group, Countrywide, Zoopla and Visit Britain. “On the strength of winning in 2012, we achieved national publicity which brought in our very first client. The competition acted as a springboard to attract further clients and by the end of 2014, we expect to turn over in the region of £1m.”
Stuart Martin, CEO, Satellite Applications Catapult and sponsors of the UK ESNC competition explains: “The UK’s thriving technology sector is ideally placed to benefit from the boom in space-based information that characterises ‘the new space age’. By 2030, the UK is expected to have a £40bn space based industry – £37bn of that market value will be driven by new products and services built on space imagery, data and technology. The ESNC offers a fantastic opportunity to bring space and business together; it enables visionary people to harness the power of the vast amounts of satellite data coming online to create new products, and who knows, it might even create an entire new industry.”
The competition is designed to help identify and promote new ideas so your product or service does not have to be on-sale to be eligible, nor do you need a detailed business plan to enter. Simply go to www.galileo-masters.eu and submit your entry on line by 30 June 2014.
To find out more about the UK leg of the competition, please visit www.ukesnc.com or contact Doug Watson at doug.watson@sa.catapult.org.uk.