Nokia unveiled a free version of its Ovi Maps navigation software Thursday that provides turn-by-turn navigation on the company’s smartphones. Analysts expect the move will have a major impact on the mobile-communications and personal-navigation industries, and could potentially be more disruptive than Google’s navigation offering.
“While free Google navigation is only available in the U.S. on certain Android phones, free Ovi Maps is rolled out globally on a large number of Nokia smartphones,” said Dominique Bonte, practice director at ABI Research. “At the same time, Ovi Maps is based on state-of-the-art NAVTEQ digital maps and proven navigation software, making it very difficult to compete against with premium offers.”
“The pressure is mounting and like many other things in mobile, we are moving to a model where you give the basics for free and you make money either on added services or on advertising,” said Gartner Research Director Carolina Milanesi. Given that turn-by-turn navigation is an important service to attract customers, IDC Research Manager Francisco Jeronimo said Nokia’s free service “will prevent the Finnish maker from seeing a stronger decline in its smartphone market share in the future.”
Doubling Market Size
Nokia’s free software covers 74 nations in 46 languages, provides detailed maps for 180 countries, and delivers detailed traffic information for more than 10 countries, so it no longer makes sense for consumers to purchase and use multiple devices that work in only one country or region, said Nokia Executive Vice President Anssi Vanjoki.
“Unlike the legacy car-navigation manufacturers, we don’t make you buy maps for different countries or regions, even if you’re only visiting for a few days,” Vanjoki said.
The number of people worldwide using GPS navigation on mobile phones last year was approximately 27 million, according to Canalys. However, Nokia expects its free Ovi Maps release will help grow the installed user…