price of charts - electronic & paper

This news release is troubling. How much more are you willing/able to pay
for charts?

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
For More Information Contact: Susan James, Navionics

Price of Electronic Charts Set to Double in Canada
Wareham, MA, January 10, 2004 - Canadian boaters, marine electronics dealers
and marine safety organizations
will soon be faced with a doubling of retail prices for electronic nautical
charts in Canada. The price increase is
due to a demand by the Canadian Hydrographic Service (CHS) and their
exclusive distributor Nautical Data
International (NDI) to charge high royalties for the rights to reproduce
Canadian nautical chart information
electronically.
In a surprise notice circulated during the opening day of the Toronto boat
show, the Canadian Hydrographic
Service refers to the Crown copyright of Canadian charts and infers that
some electronic charts are illegal. The
timing and tone of the notice is surprising in light of ongoing good faith
and long term efforts made by a consortium
of private chart manufacturers to reach an agreement with CHS/NDI.
There is unanimous agreement amongst the Canadian marine industry and the
private chart manufacturers that
a 50% royalty demand is not reasonable. In the rest of the worlds royalty
agreements range from 15% of
wholesale price to zero royalty. This royalty tax will have a negative
impact on Canadian boating safety,
environmental safety, marine equipment sales and tourism, because it will
put the price of electronic charts
beyond the means of many Canadian boaters. In the US and New Zealand the
hydrographic service does not
charge royalties in order to keep the price of charts as low as possible,
and thus promote wider use and safety of
navigation.
According to Bruce Angus of Navionics, there is a further irony because most
electronics charts on the market
in Canada do not use any NDI value-added data or services. Most electronic
charts from private manufacturers
are derived from the paper chart originals of the CHS, thus the CHS agreemen
t with NDI provides to them with
a monopolistic license to tax Canadian boaters without any added benefit.
Angus added that the ultimate decision will be made by CHS and Navionics
will honor it, but added that the
Canadian public and marine industry should participate in this decision to
ensure the public interest is represented
and boating navigation safety is maintained.
For further information please contact Navionics Inc. at the address above
or at the Toronto Boat Show, Booth#G360


Mr. Mohammad Al Zaibak
Chief Executive
Nautical Data International
1 Military Road
St. John's, NFLD A1C 2C3
Fax: 416-322-5222

Mr. Denis Hains
Acting Dominion Hydrographer and Director General
Canadian Hydrographic Service
615 Booth Street
Ottawa, Ontario K1A0F6
Tel: (613)995-4413
Fax: (613) 996-9053