Esri and Microsoft in strategic alliance on disaster maps and applications

50 ESRI has announced a strategic alliance with 2214 Microsoft to assist public and private agencies and communities around the world during disasters. Microsoft will display Esri public information maps on its cloud-based disaster response incident portal, as well as point citizens to the maps via its online outlets, such as MSN and Bing. Esri's ArcGIS integration within a number of Microsoft's disaster response management solutions will provide governments and leading aid organisations with a more comprehensive set of tools to address key challenges.

"This alliance leverages the strengths of both companies,” says Russ Johnson, global director of disaster response for Esri. “The first phase involves using our technologies to support affected organisations and provide public information faster and in a more intuitive web map format during crises."

"The ability to include Esri intelligent, interactive web maps with Microsoft's suite of disaster response offerings increases our ability to assist government agencies and private citizens," says Harmony Mabrey, senior operations manager, Microsoft Disaster Response. "Both responders and citizens will have access to a more detailed level of knowledge about the impacts of a disaster, enabling them to make more informed decisions."