Dear Friends,

Welcome to a new edition of the Azavea Journal.  Did I say Azavea?  Yes.  Some of you might have already heard the news from the letter we sent out last Wednesday, but Avencia will now be known as Azavea – pronounced like ‘azalea’. There is no particularly good reason for this, and this was not a change that we sought – we liked our name just fine.  So what happened?

Avencia became the target of a trademark dispute that sought to have our registered trademark canceled 3 years ago. While neither company has ever had any experience with a customer demonstrating confusion between the two names, the other party has persisted in their effort.  We have vigorously defended ourselves since then but now taking it to its conclusion in federal court will be even more distracting and expensive.  I have therefore decided to end the dispute in order to preserve the financial health of our firm and to focus on our company’s mission and commitment to impeccable service for our clients.

So what does Azavea mean? My brother-in-law is from Pakistan. While we were brainstorming for a new name, he mentioned that ‘zavea’ means ‘perspective’ in Urdu.  We liked the sound of it and its evident connection to geography. So after a few spelling tweaks to enable us to create a strong trademark, we adopted Azavea.

While we have a new name, the company’s mission remains the same. We will continue to perform research and create software that brings together the best aspects of geography and the web.  We remain committed to providing our clients access to advanced geospatial technologies through highly-crafted and easy-to-use web and mobile solutions, and personalized geospatial analysis services.   Our goal remains to combine our experience solving tough geospatial problems, commitment to tailored service, and a genuine desire to “do well by doing good” in order to help our clients create more dynamic, vibrant, and sustainable communities.

We are proud of our team for sticking through the ups and downs of this trademark dispute and have valued their input throughout this 3-year process.  We are grateful to work with smart people who get a kick out of working on projects with social value, and who are passionate about making a difference in the world around them.

Some of these projects are highlighted in the articles below.  Enjoy, and again, welcome to a new edition of the Azavea Journal.

Sincerely,
Robert Cheetham
President & CEO

PS:  Please note that none of our contact information has changed, except for our email addresses and website that now reflect the new name.  For instance, my new email address is cheetham@azavea.com .