{"id":686679,"date":"2025-08-23T05:09:15","date_gmt":"2025-08-23T02:09:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/european-space-tech-has-data-to-sell-but-where-are-the-buyers\/"},"modified":"2025-08-23T05:09:15","modified_gmt":"2025-08-23T02:09:15","slug":"european-space-tech-has-data-to-sell-but-where-are-the-buyers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/european-space-tech-has-data-to-sell-but-where-are-the-buyers\/","title":{"rendered":"European space tech has data to sell \u2014 but where are the buyers?"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_85 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a4168a3b298b\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a4168a3b298b\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/european-space-tech-has-data-to-sell-but-where-are-the-buyers\/#Getting_the_message_right\" >Getting the message right<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/european-space-tech-has-data-to-sell-but-where-are-the-buyers\/#Selling_space_data\" >Selling space data<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/european-space-tech-has-data-to-sell-but-where-are-the-buyers\/#Where_startups_can_start\" >Where startups can start<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/european-space-tech-has-data-to-sell-but-where-are-the-buyers\/#The_bottom_line\" >The bottom line<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/img-cdn.tnwcdn.com\/image?fit=796%2C417&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn0.tnwcdn.com%2Fwp-content%2Fblogs.dir%2F1%2Ffiles%2F2023%2F02%2FUntitled-design-6.jpg&amp;signature=4f35f96614ef2fa95bd9d232057ca338\" \/><\/p>\n<div id=\"article-main-content\">\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The European <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">space industry <\/span><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/business\/aerospace-defense\/eu-revamps-regulations-expanding-space-market-2025-06-25\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">is <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">booming<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Yet despite the boom, the industry is struggling to find commercial buyers for arguably its most valuable output: data.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">At the <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Living Planet Symposium<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> 2025 in Vienna, the European Space Agency (ESA) and private sector leaders laid out Europe\u2019s bold space ambitions and called for increased cooperation to address deep commercial gaps. Josef Aschbacher, ESA\u2019s director <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/general\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"3\" title=\"General\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">general<\/a>, highlighted one key focus.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cEarth observation within the European Space Agency is a major priority,\u201d <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">he said<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">ESA has had recent successful missions. Its miniature satellite \u03a6sat-2, for example, has<\/span><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.esa.int\/Applications\/Observing_the_Earth\/Phsat-2\/Phsat-2_begins_science_phase_for_AI_Earth_images\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> started transmitting<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> high-definition images back to Earth and will support wildfire, earthquake, and flood disaster management. The satellite can also be used to detect ships, gather data on illegal fishing, and monitor marine pollution.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"inarticle-wrapper channel-cta\">\n<div class=\"ica-text\">\n<p class=\"ica-text__title\">TNW City Coworking space &#8211; Where your best work h<a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">app<\/a>ens<\/p>\n<p>A workspace designed for growth, collaboration, and endless networking opportunities in the heart of tech.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">However, for European startups looking to develop innovative new services from space, the industry can feel like a siloed bubble. <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Daniel Smith<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, Trade and Investment Envoy for Space for the <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Scottish Government<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and founder of <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">AstroAgency<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, warned there are major fractures between the different players.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">He pointed to the disconnect between launchers, upstream and downstream space companies, and European businesses that\u2019s preventing them from benefiting from space data.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cThere\u2019s still a lot of work to be done, because these companies are still struggling to commercialise,\u201d Smith told TNW. \u201cThey\u2019re still struggling to sell that data to other sectors. Because the space sector doesn\u2019t want to buy the data.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Getting_the_message_right\"><\/span>Getting the message right<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This year, ESA began operations with a budget of \u20ac7.68bn (about $7.91bn). This represents a 1.4% decrease in funds from 2024, and is dwarfed by NASA\u2019s $25.4bn allocation for 2025. It also fails to compete with the <\/span><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/List_of_government_space_agencies?\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">estimated budget<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> of the China National Space Administration (<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">CNSA<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To fill the budget gaps, maintain a competitive edge in space, and meet its ambitions, ESA has turned to the private sector. It aims to become a leader in Earth observation services, but can only get there by engaging with the local private sector, which, according to Smith, is out of the loop on uses for space <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/technology\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"4\" title=\"Technology\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">technology<\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This could be a big problem. If European companies do not create solid demand for space tech services, the entire industry will be put at risk. This includes spaceports, satellite manufacturers, and rocket makers.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI\u2019m seeing Earth observation companies going out of business, some of which are more than 10 years old, and they\u2019re closing down because they can\u2019t commercialise,\u201d said Smith.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">While government organisations like ESA offer grants and incentive programs, the applicants often don\u2019t focus on monetisation and commercialisation, Smith added.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">That leaves them missing out on big opportunities. Earth observation primarily utilises data from low-Earth obit (LEO) satellites, which have extensive use cases.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>LEO is already well-established in weather prediction and climate change applications. Sectors like agriculture, energy, infrastructure, logistics, maritime, and finance are also applying the satellite data to drive real-world impact. Adoption depends largely on leadership vision and data capability.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Innovative use cases continue to emerge. For example, Scottish tech company\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Space Intelligence<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> uses satellite data to create trust in the carbon offset financial market. The key to unlocking Earth observation\u2019s potential, according to Smith, is reframing how we think about the tech:\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cSpace technology is ultimately about Earth, not about space.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Selling_space_data\"><\/span>Selling space data<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The space industry is typically divided into upstream and downstream sectors. Upstream covers everything from manufacturing to launch, including rockets, spaceports, and satellite operations. Downstream services, meanwhile, offer ready-to-use space data for private companies.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Downstream space data providers \u2014 driven by software developers and coding experts \u2014 retrieve satellite data, analyse it, and make it accessible for private companies.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The data they collect in LEO orbits can be immensely valuable. It could drive the European space industry and advance the development of its spaceports, rocket launchers, and satellite companies. Currently, however, commercialising the data is challenging.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As Smith explained, many space companies are struggling to sell their Earth observation data to other sectors.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cThe space sector and rocket companies don\u2019t want to buy the data,\u201d said Smith. \u201cThey want to enable the data, they want to launch the satellites, so it\u2019s still a big gap.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The reasons why European companies do not use space data in their operations are diverse. They include a lack of understanding of use cases, stigmas associated with space \u2014 such as slow and expensive processes \u2014 and the industry\u2019s failure to open up and clearly communicate its value to potential private partners.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Where_startups_can_start\"><\/span>Where startups can start<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">European companies considering Earth observation data for new ventures need to focus on downstream space services, Smith said.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Spire<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> provides a positive example. The company operates a vast constellation network of affordable nano-satellites that operate in LEO, where they collect rich, granular data.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The data has supported a variety of use cases. These <\/span><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/spire.com\/case-studies\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">include<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> greenhouse gas emissions monitoring, IoT system optimisation in manufacturing, natural disaster monitoring, and <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">maritime data<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> analytics for commodity traders.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Spire breaks apart the upstream-downstream business model by taking a holistic approach to the entire space data supply chain. The company has manufactured and launched more than 200 satellites, building them in Europe and launching them from spaceports around the world.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cThey focus very much on constellations to provide [continual] coverage,\u201d Smith said. <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cThey build the satellites for customers, but they build them for themselves as well, and then they sell their data that comes from their satellites,\u201d he added.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Spire is not the only company providing innovative downstream services in Europe. Other examples include <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Catalyst<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, which <\/span><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/catalyst.earth\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">recently<\/span><\/a> <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/catalyst.earth\/catalyst-signs-esas-statement-for-a-responsible-space-sector\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">signed<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> ESA\u2019s<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \u201cStatement for a Responsible Space Sector,\u201d and <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Hydrosat<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, which specialises in water, irrigation, and crop management solutions.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Hydrosat\u2019s latest satellite <\/span><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/hydrosat.com\/2025\/06\/24\/muon-space-launches-hydrosats-vanzyl-2-mission-in-fourth-launch-of-its-mission-optimized-halo-spacecraft-platform\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">launched in June<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. It aims to advance the use of thermal satellite data and AI for food production, security, and natural resource management.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Powerful use cases are also emerging in critical infrastructure and resource management. Forestry services, for example, are using space data from downstream providers to transform processes that were previously done manually. Tasks like inspecting and measuring forest health, size, and volume, or assessing dams and pipes are now supported by satellites.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Traditional, manual approaches to these tasks can be dangerous, time-consuming, and expensive. Today, they can be streamlined and enhanced with space data from LEO satellites equipped with various sensors, including radio frequency, radar, high-definition cameras, and infrared.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Companies also merge the LEO Earth observations data with IoT or ground-based sensor information. \u201cIt\u2019s never just space data,\u201d Smith said.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_bottom_line\"><\/span>The bottom line<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">European companies don\u2019t necessarily need to build their own satellites to benefit from space data. Many providers already operate extensive constellations offering rich, actionable insights. Startups and enterprises alike can reap the benefits.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The growth and impact of Earth observation will hinge on a stronger push from European companies to harness this wealth of space-derived data. As Smith told us, \u201cSatellites are already up there, and they\u2019re going up there more and more. We need people to use them.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMN63nwsw68G3Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more like this article, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/technology\/\" target=\"_blank\" >Technology category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/thenextweb.com\/news\/europe-space-tech-data-buyers\" target=\"_blank\" >Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The European space industry is booming. Yet despite the boom, the industry is struggling to find commercial buyers for arguably its most valuable output: data.\u00a0 At the Living Planet Symposium 2025 in Vienna, the European Space Agency (ESA) and private sector leaders laid out Europe\u2019s bold space ambitions and called for increased cooperation to address&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-686679","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-technology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/686679","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=686679"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/686679\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=686679"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=686679"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=686679"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}