CHICAGO, Jan. 11 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- NAVTEQ , a leading global provider of digital maps for vehicle navigation and location-based solutions, announced plans to acquire the gedas MapIT business unit in Mexico; gedas MapIT is the leading digital map provider in Mexico. The acquisition broadens NAVTEQ digital map coverage while creating an efficient local foundation for further expansion.
The acquisition of gedas MapIT will provide a geographic product for Mexico in response to customer requests for broader coverage that includes geometry, street names, boundaries and demographic information throughout Mexico. It also includes addressing and additional road attributes for selected areas. The company plans to integrate this new geographic coverage with its existing NAVTEQ map product in 2006.
gedas MapIT is a division of gedas Mexico, part of gedas AG, a leading IT services provider owned by the Volkswagen AG. As part of the acquisition, NAVTEQ will be acquiring strong customer relationships in the geospatial, LBS, Online Monitoring/Fleet, telecommunications and online mapping areas as well as a fully staffed production facility in Leon, Mexico and Business Development and Technical facilities/teams in both Leon and Mexico City.
NAVTEQ is already the leading provider of navigable digital maps for use in in-vehicle navigation systems in North America and Europe, with every major automobile manufacturer currently offering navigation in Europe or North America using NAVTEQ maps in one or more of its models. NAVTEQ is also a leading provider to the growing mobile navigation devices and location-based services providers.
"Our customers' business increasingly crosses borders and ultimately, we want to provide a seamless solution for them. This acquisition will provide the immediate, broad coverage they have been requesting and an initial step towards seamless coverage," said Winston Guillory, SVP, The Americas, NAVTEQ Corporation.
About gedas
gedas provides consulting on the development, system integration and operation of IT solutions to companies in the automotive and manufacturing industries. gedas' technological expertise in its core market, along with its knowledge of business processes specific to the automotive industry, also serves to benefit numerous customers from other industries and the public administration sector. The IT service provider has developed its own comprehensive philosophy, called "Intelligent Transformation," which is based on three core concepts: technological benefits, an integrated approach, and a useful interface between people and technology. gedas is headquartered in Berlin and maintains 50 branch offices in 13 countries. In 2004, the company and its approximately 5,000 employees generated sales of euro 567 million.
About NAVTEQ
NAVTEQ is a leading provider of comprehensive digital map information for automotive navigation systems, mobile navigation devices, Internet-based mapping applications, and government and business solutions. NAVTEQ creates the digital maps and map content that power navigation and location-based services solutions around the world. The Chicago-based company was founded in 1985 and has approximately 1,800 employees located in 127 offices in 21 countries.
NAVTEQ is a trademark in the U.S. and other countries. All rights reserved.
This document may include certain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, plans, objectives, expectations and intentions and other statements contained in this press release that are not historical facts and statements identified by words such as "expects", "anticipates", "intends", "plans", "believes", "seeks", "estimates" or words of similar meaning. These statements are based on our current beliefs or expectations and are inherently subject to various risks and uncertainties, including those set forth under the caption "Risk Factors" in the Company's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 26, 2005, as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Actual results may differ materially from these expectations due to changes in global political, economic, business, competitive, market and regulatory factors. NAVTEQ does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statements contained in this document as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
