In the past decade, a large range of biodiversity information
products and services has become available. Some were developed with EC
subsidies, some with national funds, and others as initiatives of universities,
research institutes or private persons. Few, if any, were developed in the
‘commercial world’ based on a business plan. Some sponsors and funders
ask for exploitation and sustainability plans after the development phase
or at the end of the project. The success of these depends on whether the
products meet real demands and serve actual markets. Market potential is
often misjudged or overestimated and many products are developed without
a prior needs or market analysis. This negatively affects the sustainability
for biodiversity information services. In this paper we review the marketing
of some biodiversity information products in a commercial environment, to
assess demands and size of the markets.
