Enter Google; Exit Microsoft, Stage Left

Enter Google; Exit Microsoft, Stage Left
http://www.gpsworld.com/lbs/enter-google-exit-microsoft-stage-left-912=
8?print=3D1

November 11, 2009
By: Kevin Dennehy
LBS Insider Newsletter, November 2009

Google Maps Navigation will change the way the location-based services in=
dustry does=20
business. How it will change the industry remains to be seen, but a major=
player offering=20
the same services for free that companies are now enjoying much profit fr=
om is very=20
disconcerting.

In other company news, MSN Direct=E2=80=99s use of unused FM radio spectr=
um was a great idea in=20
2004. It effectively used unused portions of the FM radio spectrum to del=
iver such=20
location-based services as real-time traffic, weather, and other content.=
It was a victim=20
of low-cost and evolving technology for LBS delivery. Having Microsoft in=
volved in LBS was=20
a big shot in the arm for the industry. However, it remains to be seen wh=
at the company=E2=80=99s=20
plans are to continue in the LBS space in the near future.

Despite industry observers and competitors who say otherwise, Google=E2=80=
=99s launch of its=20
Google Maps Navigation product will clearly change the players, services =
offered, and=20
financial stability of the location-based services market. The service, w=
hile being touted=20
as free, still requires initial users on the Verizon system to have requi=
site voice and=20
data plans.

With such capability as turn-by-turn navigation, voice guidance, and auto=
matic re-routing,=20
Google Maps Navigation is no entry-level app that competitors should igno=
re. Google Maps=20
Navigation initially is being offered on the Android 2.0 series devices.

Companies have seen this type of service coming from Google for a long ti=
me and predicted=20
some dire times for both personal navigation device (PND) companies and h=
andset navigation=20
vendors who offer services in a very lucrative market.

Some say that Google, which dropped Tele Atlas as its mapping company for=
North America in=20
early October (though kept the company=E2=80=99s mapping data for interna=
tional markets), will=20
make money off of location-based ads that are sold in conjunction with th=
e navigation=20
solution. The company purchased mobile advertising company, AdMob, for $7=
50 million,=20
though it is not known whether it AdMob will be joining the location-base=
d advertising=20
fray in conjunction with Google Maps Navigation =E2=80=94 but the specula=
tion is there.

Stay tuned, the fireworks and fallout from this announcement are yet to b=
e determined.

MSN Direct to Be Shut Down in 2012
Microsoft=E2=80=99s recent decision to shut down MSN Direct in early 2012=
not only means that a=20
major company=E2=80=99s location-based services offering is going away, b=
ut also signals that the=20
way LBS is delivered is rapidly evolving. MSN Direct, launched in early =
2004, was offered=20
on several navigation devices, such as Garmin=E2=80=99s Nuvi line.

MSN Direct works with unused FM radio spectrum to broadcast such data as =
real-time=20
traffic, weather, stock quotes, and local gas prices. Microsoft said that=
the demand for=20
the service had decreased significantly with the rise of Wi-Fi cellular, =
FM RDS (Radio=20
Data System), and other digital networks.

The data networks that deliver traffic and other content to mobile and in=
-car devices are=20
going through a significant evolution, said Scott Sedlik, Inrix=E2=80=99 =
vice president of=20
marketing. =E2=80=9CMSN Direct was an innovative service early on and did=
provide value-added=20
information, but ultimately is a casualty of getting stuck between other =
networks that=20
were able to deliver more scale=E2=80=A6less expensively.=E2=80=9D

Sedlik said that RDS-TMC (Traffic Message Service) continues to be the do=
minant broadcast=20
network for delivering traffic in North America and Europe. =E2=80=9CClea=
r Channel=E2=80=99s Total Traffic=20
Network has the broadcast adoption with more than 1 million subs from BMW=
, Mini, TomTom=20
and other PNDs, OEMs. Navteq=E2=80=99s RDS-TMC network has grown from a f=
ew thousand subs to=20
several hundred thousand based on their ad-supported model that is bundle=
d with Garmin=20
PNDs at retail,=E2=80=9D he said.

Sedlik said that XM/Sirius traffic data services, delivered via satellite=
, have had some=20
success in automotive. =E2=80=9CHowever, the high subscription price and=
Sirius=E2=80=99 financial=20
stability have created significant concerns at auto OEMs regarding the lo=
ng-term viability=20
of the services,=E2=80=9D he said. =E2=80=9CHD radio broadcast data servi=
ces, and [Digital Audio=20
Broadcasting] in Europe, are still in their infancy, but are expected to =
deliver broadcast=20
services next year. MSN Direct ultimately got squeezed between the vario=
us business=20
models and content of these one-way broadcast services.=E2=80=9D

While one-way broadcast services may be dominant right now, the end-game =
is two-way=20
connectivity for delivery of traffic, navigation, and other services, Sed=
lik said. =E2=80=9CThe=20
iPhone and, soon, Android-based devices are creating a revolution in the =
classical mobile=20
value chains. They are spurring intense adoption of GPS-enable smartphone=
s,=E2=80=9D he said.=20
=E2=80=9CTwo-way connectivity and the evolving value chain allow applicat=
ion developers, and OEMs,=20
to deliver incredibly rich, up-to-date, and personalized traffic, navigat=
ion, weather and=20
other content in ways that were previously not financially viable.=E2=80=9D=
=20


Microsoft said it will provide pro-rated refunds for existing MSN Direct =
customers,=20
including those in a one-time payment program.

So while MSN Direct is shutting down, Sedlik predicts that RDS-TMC contin=
ues to grow in=20
the next few years in terms of overall subscriptions, but will ultimately=
decline over=20
time. He said that HD radio will gain some adoption, particularly in auto=
motive to steal a=20
share of the market from satellite operators. =E2=80=9CGPRS and GSM, as w=
ell as hyrbird HD/GPRS=20
solutions, will gain the majority of the market opportunity,=E2=80=9D he =
said.

Echoing Sedlik=E2=80=99s remarks about the rise of the smartphone as the =
platform of choice to=20
deliver traffic and other content, Andre Gueziec, Beat the Traffic CEO an=
d founder, said=20
that wireless data plans are going down in cost for 3G and 4G service. =E2=
=80=9CWe see the=20
smartphone as the key client for traffic information. We are moving aggre=
ssively with=20
consumer and white-label products for Blackberry and the iPhone,=E2=80=9D=
he said.

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lik said. =93The
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id.

Trouble is there are holes in cellular coverage, so unless the entire
database for the route is loaded at the time the route is computed, I
don't see cellular data being as good as a map database. The only good
news here is that maybe the database DVD prices will drop with
increased competition.

In article


You can have a map database for just about anywhere on earth for free,
if you're willing to do a little work -- check out Open Street Map.

ISaac

On Wed, 11 Nov 2009 20:04:11 -0800, isw wrote:


ISaac,

unfortunately not "just about everywhere", but only in
industrialized countries and in the center of big cities. In
other words, everywhere where there are enough geeks to make the
maps.

Try it in upcountry Africa, for example. Open Street Map fails
miserably in such areas, and this will not change any time soon.

I believe a solution will first come from Google, if they decide
to ask map users for their tracks and process those
automatically. They also have satellite photos, so the question
is to make the best of these kinds of available data.

Hans-Georg

You can help too.


I agree, but again, if you're not going there it doesn't matter. And if
you are, you can begin to make it better.


It's a long way from GPS tracks and/or satellite photos to having a good
map. Somebody has to do the work, and if it's a business, then
(reasonably) they're going to want money for it.

Isaac