The war in Afghanistan has opened a window of opportunity for Israeli company ImageSat International, which sells satellite photographs of Earth. ImageSat, which operates from Cyprus, operates the Eros-1 commercial satellite.
In its latest issue, ”Defense News” reports that the National Imagery and Mapping Agency's (NIMA), an arm of the US government, is not permitting Space Imaging, a Colorado-based space photography company, which is ImageSat’s main competitor, to supply satellite photographs to all comers.
The restrictive agreement, signed this month, obliges Space Imaging to sell satellite photos of the fighting in Afghanistan exclusively to the US Department of Defense and other government bodies. Space Imaging is enjoined from selling the photos to any non-governmental body, commercial or otherwise, without the express permission of the authorities. The $2 million agreement, renewable every 30 days, is expected to remain in force until the end of the war in Afghanistan.
The restrictive agreement leaves ImageSat without any competition for the Afghanistan satellite photograph market. Space Imaging has received permission to sell only one picture of the war area to date. The photograph documents the results of the bombing of the Taliban-held airport near Kandahar.
Mark Brender, manager of Space Image’s Washington office, said the company hopes to receive permission to sell additional photographs.
At the same time, Israeli government and satellite industry sources said the window of opportunity is liable to close if Washington presses Israel to limit the number of photographs and their sale.
A senior Israel Ministry of Defense official told “Defense News” that if asked, Israel will be willing to reach agreement with ImageSat to limit the company’s sale of photographs of Afghanistan on the open market. The official added that the Eros-1 satellite photos would be one of the issues discussed at the meeting between Ministry of Defense director general Amos Yaron and US Defense Department no. 3 Douglas Feith.
Ownership of ImageSat is in the hands of a group of international investors. Any agreement stemming from political or military needs will therefore require compensation for the company.
”It is still too early to discuss who will pay for what, if at all,” said the official. “The point is that if we must reach an agreement with the US concerning the Eros-1 satellite, the company must be given fair compensation.”
Since the war in Afghanistan began, Eros-1 has taken 10 pictures of the battle area at a resolution of one meter. ImageSat sold photographs of the bombed runways in the Herat and Mazar-I Sharif airports to the BBC and is now negotiating the sale of photographs from Kabul with CNN and other communications media.
BBC representative in Israel Andrew Steele told “Defense News” that BBC had bought two photographs of the damage caused by US and British planes bombing of Taliban targets. “It is wonderful to get something independent, uncensored, and not prepackaged by any government, army, or Ministry of Defense,” Steele said.
According to Steele, the photographs enabled the BBC to see clearly the extent of the damage caused by the bombing.
A satellite sector source said that ImageSat’s satellite passes over Afghanistan every three days and the company is prepared to develop and distribute the photographs within 24 hours of the moment they are broadcast by the satellite. The prices are $5,000-10,000 per photo, according to the quality and degree of exclusivity the customer asks for.
Former Israel Airforce commander Eitan Ben Eliyahu said that ImageSat should be prepared for limitations on photographing sensitive regions. "Eros-1 is a commercial satellite, but also a national asset. Since Israel is a true friend of the US, there should be a place for cooperation and consideration, particularly in a crisis,” Ben Eliyahu added.
Published by Israel's Business Arena on October 23, 2001