HERE Drive+

Uber Technologies has made a $3 billion bid to get its hands on Nokia's HERE Mapping navigation technology, according to report by New York Times, citing sources from within the company. Apparently, the bid is in competition from a group of prominent German car manufacturers including BMW, Audi, and Mercedes-Benz, along with Chinese Baidu, who is reportedly investing some amount as well, says the report. The new report from NYT is in line with earlier reports that suggested the Finnish giant is possibly considering to sell off its Here Maps business to potential suitors. Notably, Nokia made the announcement to sell off its mapping business the same day it acquired Alcatel-Lucent, to focus primarily on its network equipment business for telecoms service providers. While Google Maps being the most widely used mapping service in the United States, though that isn't exactly the case globally. The report from New York Times further states that Nokia's mapping service dominates globally with an 80 percent of market share. Moreover, the fact that Uber may be trying to end its dependence on Google. As in February, Uber said it joined hands with Carnegie Mellon University to research and invest in transportation technologies. While in March, the company said it would acquire deCarta, a mapping business based in San Jose, California. This move could help customer's using Uber's car-pooling service UberPool, as it requires more complex routing technologies than regular pick-n-drop services. https://www.inferse.com/30410/nokia-plans-reenter-smartphone-market-2016/ Nokia is expected to announce the sale of its Here Mapping Business by month-end, according to New York Times.

Uber bids $3 billion for Nokia’s HERE services to wean off its dependence on Google