OREANDA-NEWS. Hitachi, Ltd. and Mitsubishi Corporation (MC) announced that MC agreed to sell, and Hitachi agreed to purchase, 51% of the issued shares of Japan Space Imaging Corporation (JSI), a subsidiary of MC, and that Hitachi and MC will jointly operate the satellite imagery business through JSI.

U.S. government policy on the commercialization of military space technology in the 1990s served as the starting point for the satellite imagery market, and the usage of imagery collected by commercially-owned satellites is now expanding in a wide range of fields. Due to advantages provided by features that allow it to capture a wider area than airborne imagery in a single shot, satellite imagery is now playing an increasingly important role in crisis management, including national security and disaster response situations, as well as in construction and infrastructure management. In addition, due to advancements in data processing technology, satellite imagery is expected to be employed in various civilian and commercial applications, such as web applications that combine mapping and road data, as well as in social infrastructure and web contents.

Focused primarily on the public sector, in particular, Japan's Ministry of Defense, Hitachi has been providing satellite imagery services since 1997, taking advantage of satellite imagery distribution rights acquired by its subsidiary, Hitachi Solutions, Ltd, from US-based DigitalGlobe, Inc.

In 1998, MC established JSI to take advantage of distribution rights acquired from GeoEye, Inc., and through JSI, has been promoting the sales of satellite imagery in a wide range of fields in the commercial sector, such as to game makers and the media, in addition to the public sector.

Triggered by the merger of GeoEye and DigitalGlobe in January 2013, a review of the structure of the satellite imagery businesses, at both Hitachi and MC, led the two companies to agree to collaborate through JSI, with Hitachi's participation implemented by means of the acquisition of 51% of JSI shares issued from MC.

Through this transfer of JSI stocks, Hitachi and MC will take full advantage of MC's experience in the business and JSI's sales network, combined with Hitachi's technological expertise, in their efforts to further expand the market.