Nokia is selling its maps business and it's looking to Apple and several other big names including Alibaba, Amazon, and Facebook for bids, reports Bloomberg.
Those companies as well as Facebook Inc., a group of German carmakers, and private-equity firms are among the companies looking at Nokia’s maps operations, known as HERE, highlighting the ubiquity and utility of location-based services. Nokia is seeking more than 3 billion euros ($3.2 billion) from a sale of the unit, said one of the people, who asked not to be identified discussing private information.
Nokia's mapping assets have lost a lot value since the company bought them for $8.1 billion in 2008. Last year they were worth about 2 billion euros.
The company is looking to sell the business and focus on mobile-network equipment and services. It just acquired Alcatel-Lucent for 15.6 billion euros, creating the world's largest supplier of equipment for mobile-phone networks. First-round bids for the mapping unit are due at the end of next week, according to sources.
Do you think Apple could benefit from adding Nokia's mapping data? Nokia Here offers an offline navigation solution for the iPhone. Let us know if you use the app. How accurate do u find it compared to Apple Maps? You can download HERE from the App Store for free.
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Those companies as well as Facebook Inc., a group of German carmakers, and private-equity firms are among the companies looking at Nokia’s maps operations, known as HERE, highlighting the ubiquity and utility of location-based services. Nokia is seeking more than 3 billion euros ($3.2 billion) from a sale of the unit, said one of the people, who asked not to be identified discussing private information.
Nokia's mapping assets have lost a lot value since the company bought them for $8.1 billion in 2008. Last year they were worth about 2 billion euros.
The company is looking to sell the business and focus on mobile-network equipment and services. It just acquired Alcatel-Lucent for 15.6 billion euros, creating the world's largest supplier of equipment for mobile-phone networks. First-round bids for the mapping unit are due at the end of next week, according to sources.
Do you think Apple could benefit from adding Nokia's mapping data? Nokia Here offers an offline navigation solution for the iPhone. Let us know if you use the app. How accurate do u find it compared to Apple Maps? You can download HERE from the App Store for free.
Read More