DigitalGlobe and GeoEye are not the only commercial satellite companies providing high resolution imagery to governments. In Europe, Astrium is talking about its new satellite offerings, and positioning itself and the merged DigitalGlobe as the world’s leading providers of imagery:

Patrick Le Roch, director of Astrium Services’ Geo-Information division, said the proposed merger of DigitalGlobe and GeoEye “creates a de facto duopoly between us and the merged U.S. companies.”

Briefing reporters here Oct. 8 during a visit to the Pleiades 1B and Spot 7 assembly facilities, Le Roch said Astrium Services estimates the global addressable market for Earth observation imagery is about 1.8 billion euros ($2.3 billion) in 2012.

The market, he said, is growing at a rate of 7 percent per year, with the high-resolution component growing faster than the other niches.

Le Roch said the “addressable” qualifier is meant to exclude markets that are not open to…