Author: Paul Sawers / Source: VentureBeat
TomTom has announced that it’s selling its telematics division to automotive giant Bridgestone Europe for €910 million ($1,033 billion).
Founded in 1991, TomTom is best known for its GPS-powered navigation services and devices, such as satellite navigation units for cars, and it is also one of the major global online mapping platforms, alongside the likes of Google Maps, Here Technologies, and OpenStreetMap.
The Dutch company offers a number of other services, such as telematics, to help businesses manage their fleets — including gaining insights into driver behavior and knowing where each vehicle is in real time.News emerged a few months back that TomTom was considering offloading its telematics unit in a push to compete with Google in navigation software. At the time, TomTom confirmed that it was carrying out a strategic review of the division, with analysts valuing the business at around €700 million ($800 million) — but its final sale price is notably higher than this original estimate.
Though TomTom has previously denied that this move is about competing with Google Maps, that is likely a factor. Indeed, in September Google inked an extensive deal with major carmakers such as Renault, Nissan, and Mitsubishi to push Android — including services like Google Maps — to their automobiles. Back in 2015, Here was acquiredd by a…
The post TomTom sells telematics unit for $1 billion to better compete with Google in maps and navigation appeared first on FeedBox.