Windows Phone Thoughts: Europe Launches GPS Rival?

"The European Union launched its first Galileo navigation satellite, the Giove-A, on Dec. 28 in a program to end Europe's reliance on the United States' Global Positioning System, or GPS. The European system, which is expected to go into service in 2008, aims to have an accuracy of 3 feet or less--five times better than the current GPS system."

Now, a few things strike me as odd here. First of all, why do we need another GPS system? Does the current global system not work well enough for you? I am not a GPS user, so I don't know how well it works. I know it is accurate to within 6 feet if you have the right kind of receiver. GPS accuracy is less so because the US military deliberately makes it a bit fuzzy without the right hardware. Furthermore, using Differential GPS, it is accurate to 1 centimeter.

So, what is the point of this new system? Even if it is five times more accurate than the US system for the general user, that means the US system is accurate to within 15 feet. If you need accuracy beyond that while driving around, you should have your driver's license revoked. Is this just so Europe has its own system, or is there really an advantage here, besides to the hardware makers that plan to make a killing off of new equipment purchases.