Vodafone Germany launched a downloadable Java-based mapping application that features hi-resolution aerial photos and a searchable database of more than 4,000 German points of interest.
Like Google Earth and other mapping applications for computers, Mobile Earth allows users to access satellite images of specific addresses and view a map of recommended routes for driving directions. The application, which was developed by LocatioNet Systems Ltd. and uses content from TeleAtlas, is available via download from the Vodafone Live portal.
“This innovative application takes the subscribers beyond mapping and information services by adding another interesting dimension: the option to view the high-resolution aerial photos,” LocatioNet’s Ofer Tziperman said in a prepared statement. “The Java platform creates a user-friendly interface and allows smart handling of maps that cannot be achieved with WAP.”
While mobile mapping applications may not be the sexiest way to use a wireless phone, they are gaining traction among subscribers. Telephia last month reported that MapQuest is among the top mobile Web destinations for U.S. subscribers, drawing more than 3 million users in June. The popular site proved more popular than CNN’s mobile Web site, AOL Mobile, and weather and search offerings from Yahoo Inc. (Yahoo Mail was the most popular destination for wireless users, however, with more than 6.5 million visitors.)
Nokia Corp. jumped onto the playing field too, agreeing to acquire Berlin-based mapping software firm gate5 for an undisclosed sum. The privately owned, 7-year-old developer makes applications for personal navigation devices and mobile handsets running Symbian, Microsoft Corp.’s Windows Mobile, Linux, Palm and Java operating systems.
The world’s largest handset maker said it hopes to use gate5’s technology to offer sophisticated mapping applications through itsseries smart phones.
“The personal navigation device market is in a rapid growth phase, with the global market size expected to reach 15 million units in 2006 compared with 8 million units in 2005,” said Anssi Vanjoki, Nokia’s executive vice president and general manager of multimedia. “By integrating the maps and navigation capabilities into our devices, Nokia will participate in this growth.”
Google, of course, is actively involved in the mobile mapping space, as well. The company powers services for Research In Motion Ltd.’s BlackBerry and Palm Inc.’s Treo, and Google Maps is available on mass-market phones via a free download, allowing users to view satellite images, retrieve directions and access real-time traffic information in more than 30 U.S. cities.
Yahoo has been less aggressive in offering mapping solutions to mass-market wireless subscribers, but the company offers a handy feature that allows users to access driving directions on a PC and send the directions to a mobile phone.
As more high-tech phones come to market, mapping services are expected to become more accurate and increasingly complex. Location-based services provider TeleNav Inc. two weeks ago introduced what it claims is the first GPS application for wireless phones to offer full-color, 3-dimensional moving maps.
The updated version of the company’s GPS Navigator includes a Wi-Fi hot-spot finder and “parking-spot marker” for absent-minded drivers. The application is available to users with select smart phones and GPS-enabled devices for $10 a month—a price the company touts as substantially less than in-car navigation systems or personal navigation devices.
Verizon Wireless late last year began offering a similarly priced service. Verizon Navigator, which launched last December, is available on mass-market phones for $10 a month or $3 a day. The service uses AtlasBook, a technology created by location software developer Networks In Motion, and is available through the carrier’s Get It Now service.
