All Points Blog: Our Opinion, Your Views of All Things Location

Wednesday, October 3. 2007

Buy NAVTEQ! No wait...

Don't you just love financial analysts? Seeking Alpha reported that, upon hearing the news of the Nokia deal for NAVTEQ, two analysts, Deutsche Bank and Matrix, issued a "buy" rating on the stock. They had previously had a "sell" rating. How's that for market timing?

I'm not a stock analyst (nor do I play one on TV), but I offered my own analysis at the beginning of 2007. I figure my MBA was good for something.

Posted by Joe Francica in Geospatial Business at 14:03 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0)

Jones: Google Didn't Pursue NAVTEQ

But Google is hedging its bets. Michael T. Jones, chief technologist of Google Earth, Maps and Local, says the company never considered buying Navteq. Instead, Google could simply recreate the data far more cheaply by tapping the mapmaking skills of its hundreds of millions of users — a wiki of maps, he suggests.

- Forbes

Posted by Adena Schutzberg at 08:18 | Comments (13) | Trackbacks (0)

Hey, Nokia - Now Buy Skype!

Stephen Wellman at InformationWeek offers up five reasons to do so, including, integrated LBS into Skype.

Posted by Adena Schutzberg at 08:11 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0)

Another Take on Nokia Deal: To 'Snub' Qualcomm

The Inquirer (UK) puts foward this story of why Nokia is after NAVTEQ:

Besides being the driving force behind Cdmaone, Qualcomm is renowned for its expertise in GPS. So Nokia had the potential for being locked in a conflict with Qualcomm not just over 3G but also over GPS.

But – as our source implies – if you suddenly acquire native US based GPS technology – courtesy of Navteq, then you're not going to have to worry about paying a large tithe to Qualcomm just to put GPS into your handsets.

I don't understand this logic. Qualcomm specializes in hardware, doesn't it? "Designer and supplier of CDMA chipsets, system software, network base stations, handsets, modems, kid trackers, camera phones, MP3 players, game players..." It makes GPS chips (as do others). NAVTEQ does not make GPS enabling hardware, but rather data. Maybe I've missed something?

- Inquirer

Posted by Adena Schutzberg at 08:02 | Comment (1) | Trackbacks (0)

The End of Professional Mapmaking - thanks to TomTom?

In a curious opinion piece at PC Authority (Australia) Darien Graham-Smith suggests that TomTom's Map Share means the end of cartography (paid) as we know it.

It's not online law-breakers that could threaten the map makers' livelihoods, though: it's a million competitors working together, perfectly legally, for free.

He doesn't see it happnenin immediately, but down the road. And, no he does not mention TomTom's planned acquisition of Tele Atlas, nor Nokia's of NAVTEQ. He does note how TomTom makes lots of money selling map data and it not likely to give that up anytime soon.

Posted by Adena Schutzberg at 07:50 | Comments (7) | Trackbacks (0)

Bidding War for Tele Atlas?

Most people were so wrapped up considering the Nokia/NAVTEQ deal that the news that TomTom made its formal offer for Tele Atlas this week may have been lost. But, with the Nokia deal at $8.1 billion and Tele Atlas at $2.6 (offered in July) some think Tele Atlas may reconsider. TA's stock price is up 30% since July.

One analyst, ABN Amro's Gille, expects a TA shareholder "rebellion" over the price. They'll want more. He goes on to speculate about a bidding war with Garmin and Microsoft as players.

TomTom is down in recent days.

- Forbes

Posted by Adena Schutzberg at 07:29 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0)

Comments

Michael Sweet about Microsoft Eagle 1: R&D Implementation of Integrated Data/ Maps for Emergency Response
December 5
It may be the successful implementation, [...]

Ray about Pitney Bowes Offers Silverlight-based FireLocator
December 5
Another Typo: I think you mean "PB" [...]

Jene van der Heide (sr. pm Cadastre NL) about Microsoft Eagle 1: R&D Implementation of Integrated Data/ Maps for Emergency Response
December 5
Not the technology is the succes behind [...]

FAKHRI GHONEIM about Microsoft Eagle 1: R&D Implementation of Integrated Data/ Maps for Emergency Response
December 5
thankes for the technologey
dr.fakhri

Grant about Next acquisition (after Pownce)? BrightKite?
December 5
It's interesting the Brightkite has left [...]

Rich Owings about Latest Navigon Panned
December 4
I pan units all the time, and the [...]

Jack about The Simpsons Tackles Cell Phone Tracking
December 3
Full episodes with Bart and his crazy [...]

Special Announcement

Newsletter

Calendar

Syndicate This Blog

Top Referers

Our Points