BMW, Audi and Daimler jointly acquire Nokia HERE digital mapping business

[Jason]

BIMMERPOST NEWS

AUDI AG, BMW Group and Daimler AG agree with Nokia Corporation on joint acquisition of HERE digital mapping business

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Via Autonews

August 3, 2015 08:05 CET

FRANKFURT -- BMW, Audi and Daimler will buy Nokia's mapping business HERE for 2.8 billion euros ($3.1 billion) in a push to extend the reach of automakers into digital services for connected cars.

The three automakers will each hold an equal stake in HERE, which is one of the biggest vehicle-navigation suppliers, and none of them seeks to acquire a majority interest.

"For the automotive industry this is the basis for new assistance systems and ultimately fully autonomous driving," the companies said in a joint statement today.

The deal underscores the German competitors’ push for self-driving systems independent of technology giants such as Google, which is looking at entering the auto industry.

Intelligent mapping systems are the basis on which self-driving cars linked to wireless networks can perform intelligent functions such as recalculating a route if data about a traffic jam or an accident is transmitted to the car. In the future, such mapping systems will have a role to play in collision detection and other features of self-driving.

While there has previously been limited cooperation on auto parts, the joint acquisition on this scale involving BMW, Volkswagen Group’s Audi division and Mercedes-Benz owner Daimler is unprecedented.

Supplying HERE’s technology to other carmakers would also enable the German partners to tap into a market for automotive data and connectivity that consulting company McKinsey & Co. estimates could surge sixfold from current levels to 180 billion euros by 2020.

The transaction is expected to be completed in the first quarter of next year. Nokia said it will get net proceeds on the sale of slightly more than 2.5 billion euros.

HERE supplies map data for about 80 percent of cars with in-dash navigation systems in North America and Europe. Nokia is shedding the maps business to help it focus on integrating its 15.6 billion-euro purchase of Alcatel Lucent, a deal that will create the world's second largest network equipment maker.

Suitors for HERE included Chinese web services company Baidu, private-equity firm Apax Partners in cooperation with U.S. online car-booking provider Uber Technologies and Microsoft, according to people familiar with the matter.

Reuters and Bloomberg contributed to this report.


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BMW Press Release

August 3, 2015

- Acquisition will secure and strengthen HERE as an independent company serving customers from all industries

- Real-time maps and location based services will be the basis for the mobility of tomorrow

- Transaction expected to close in first quarter 2016

Ingolstadt, Munich, Stuttgart – August 3rd, 2015. AUDI AG, the BMW Group and Daimler AG have agreed with Nokia Corporation that they will acquire its mapping and location services business HERE. The acquisition is intended to secure the long term availability of HERE’s products and services as an open, independent and value creating platform for cloud-based maps and other mobility services accessible to all customers from the automotive industry and other sectors. The three partners will each hold an equal stake in HERE; none of them seeks to acquire a majority interest. Subject to the approval of the relevant antitrust authorities, the transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2016.

HERE is laying the foundations for the next generation of mobility and location based services. For the automotive industry this is the basis for new assistance systems and ultimately fully autonomous driving. Extremely precise digital maps will be used in combination with real-time vehicle data in order to increase road safety and to facilitate innovative new products and services. On the basis of the shared raw data, all automobile manufacturers can offer their customers differentiated and brand-specific services.

“Our environment is constantly changing. That’s why the information in digital maps has to be continually updated so that maximum utility can be offered,” stated Rupert Stadler, Chairman of the Board of Management of AUDI AG. The high-precision cameras and sensors installed in modern cars are the digital eyes for updating mobility data and maps; in this way, information such as speed limits or critical driving situations are already recognized today. All data gained will be processed in compliance with strict data-protection rules.

“HERE will play a key role in the digital revolution of mobility, combining high definition maps and data from vehicles to make travel safer and easier for everyone,” explained Harald Krüger, Chairman of the Board of Management of BMW AG.

This knowledge will be to the benefit of all carmakers and their customers. “High-precision digital maps are a crucial component of the mobility of the future. With the joint acquisition of HERE, we want to secure the independence of this central service for all vehicle manufacturers, suppliers and customers in other industries,” stated Dieter Zetsche, Chairman of the Board of Management of Daimler AG.

Swarm intelligence will create new information density for road maps

”HERE will be able to offer users a continuously improving product, bringing highly automated driving and location based services a step further. As the volume of anonymized data from the vehicles increases, services will become more convenient, more connected and further tailored to the users’ individual requirements,” said Ulrich Hackenberg, Member of the Board of Management of AUDI AG for Technical Development, Klaus Fröhlich, Member of the Board of Management of BMW AG for Development, and Thomas Weber, Member of the Board of Management of Daimler AG for Group Research. It is the explicit intention that all HERE customers are to benefit from this continuous optimization.

The social benefits of swarm intelligence are enormous: They facilitate warnings of hazards in real time, of icy roads for example, based on calculations of individual data such as ABS activations and outside temperature. Upcoming traffic jams will be identified more precisely in the future, significantly reducing the risk of accidents. In this way, the vision of accident-free driving is gradually becoming reality. In a further stage, the data could be used to learn about critical bends on the road, in order to warn drivers in good time or to activate assistance systems. Anticipation of green phases of stoplights could navigate vehicles through an urban area on a “green wave” with the appropriate engine performance and minimized fuel consumption.

High-precision maps are important for autonomous driving and many other forms of assistance systems, as these technologies require an up-to-date plan of a vehicle’s surroundings exact to the nearest centimeter, in order to react in real time. While HERE already produces extremely precise static maps, they can be verified more exactly and continually updated with a constant flow of data from vehicles’ surroundings.

HERE will continue to offer its services and products across industries

HERE provides mapping and location intelligence for nearly 200 countries in more than 50 languages and is one of the main providers of mapping and location services. The company will continue to develop its position as a strong and independent provider of maps and location-based services, will expand its product offering and continue to make it available to all customers across industries.

The management of HERE will continue to be independent – with the goal of moving the HERE business case forward as a platform, open to all customers. The consortium will not interfere into operational business.

[DeeKay]

Pretty great move if this makes it more accessible to more cars in the lineup down the line... At the moment navigation is a pretty expensive add-on in Denmark (partly because of our insane tax system, but anyway way too expensive...)

Not getting my hopes too high though...

[raysspl]

This is good news. I really hope they make great use of this newly acquired technology.

[phoenixbmwlife]

Hmm I'm going to look into this stock of its available.

[Dackelone]

I think "we human's" days of driving our own cars are numbered. Number in less then five years I'd say. This is a smart move by the big three German makers.

[IB M]

Interesting. I still prefer portable tech with the ability to upgrade on a short 1 to 2 year cycle which is way sooner than the new car cycle.

[MightyMouseTech]

Originally Posted by Dackelone

I think "we human's" days of driving our own cars are numbered. Number in less then five years I'd say. This is a smart move by the big three German makers.

A big problem with that is our Canadian winters. A self driving car will not work with 3 feet of snow on the ground.

[LouisFCO]

Originally Posted by Dackelone

I think "we human's" days of driving our own cars are numbered. Number in less then five years I'd say. This is a smart move by the big three German makers.

Doubtful. The biggest hurdle is going to be road and city infrastructure, and the numerous political hurdles manufacturers and suppliers will have to jump through. After that, you then have to sort out how exactly automated cars will communicate between each other and others, to prevent accidents and collisions, as well as make judgement calls when to comes to "preservation of human life."

I am 32 and will be surprised if this happens within the next 30 years.

Originally Posted by IB M

Interesting. I still prefer portable tech with the ability to upgrade on a short 1 to 2 year cycle which is way sooner than the new car cycle.

I agree - personally I think this is a desperate move to avoid assimilating to Google. Furthermore, wouldn't manufacturers be better off integrating systems that simply allow you to dock your current device? and then display a truncated OS? And to heck with Android vs. Apple. Just make both truncated OS's native to the car. Heck, Google Maps can be had on iOS, so obviously Apple isn't THAT butt-hurt over the competition.

[MightyMouseTech]

Originally Posted by LouisFCO

I am 32 and will be surprised if this happens within the next 30 years.

Going to have to disagree on this one. It will be a lot sooner than most people think. At least in some areas. Some areas it is just not feasible.

Can not wait!

Then all the people who are scared of driving on the highway will actually merge at a proper speed and drive in the correct lane!