Implementation of the European Spatial Metadata Infrastructure
The European Spatial Metadata Infrastructure (ESMI) project, partly funded by the European Commission, DG XIII, in the framework of the INFO2000 programme for the development of a European multimedia content industry, commenced in January 1998 for two years. The aim of this project is to improve access to European geographic information, and, in particular, to create a single access gate to linked Internet services that describe geographic information. The project will provide mechanisms that directly link users of geographic information with metadata services using the Internet. Metadata - information about data - is seen as a first step towards easier access to data. A single access point to the service will allow access to existing, connected metadata servers. The Web-based interface will accommodate different languages, and will link metadata services using a common profile.