Conclusions of the Conference

Extract

It is clear that global civil navigation systems have already had a major impact on marine users, and are likely to continue to do so for the future. There is not a marine industry as such in this context, but a number of different classes of marine user, each of which has different requirements, different expectations, and even different viewpoints within a single class. There is even a difference between the viewpoint of what I might call the establishment — governments, IMO and the like — which are concerned with safety, protecting the environment, and such matters, and whose interest embraces a numerical minority of vessels and sea, and vessel operators in general, who represent a potential market of very considerable size and importance. This market, I suspect, will be driven by commercial considerations, and not — at least initially at any rate — by regulation.