MapmyIndia raises Venture Funds, led by Qualcomm Ventures

MapmyIndia raises Venture Funds, led by Qualcomm Ventures

Strategic cooperation to mobilize GPS navigation and location-based services

 

New Delhi, February 16, 2009: MapmyIndia, India’s leading digital maps and navigation services provider, today announced that Qualcomm Ventures has led a round of strategic investment in the company with participation from existing investors Kleiner Perkins Caufield Byers, Sherpalo Ventures and Nexus India Capital.

 

The investment will leverage Qualcomm’s worldwide leadership in wireless technologies and MapmyIndia’s leadership in India’s digital maps, location-based services and GPS navigation, to empower the entire telecom, automotive and internet ecosystems. With the recent launch of 3G in India, and growing demand for rich data services, device manufacturers and mobile operators can go-to-market quickly today with GPS navigation and advanced location-based services on handsets and Personal Navigation Devices (PND) powered by India’s most comprehensive digital map, data and solutions from MapmyIndia. The automotive sector can look to enhanced in-car safety and infotainment through next-generation GPS navigation and telematics products from MapmyIndia and Qualcomm. Converged devices, which marry the internet with mobility, can benefit from MapmyIndia’s server platform to deliver maps and navigation information across internet, mobile, in-car and digital TV.

 

Rakesh Verma, Promoter and Managing Director of MapmyIndia, said “MapmyIndia has been driven with a passion and vision to digitally map India for the last 16 years. We are proud and excited that Qualcomm has shown its belief in MapmyIndia. With this new investment and collaboration with Qualcomm, we will engage all leading players of the ecosystem – handset manufacturers, mobile operators, automotive manufacturers, hardware vendors, chipset providers, and application developers – with India’s best digital maps, GPS navigation products and location-based services.”

 

Commenting on the development, Kanwalinder Singh, president Qualcomm India and South Asia said, “Qualcomm is pleased to collaborate with MapmyIndia to bring the best experience for location-based services to Indian consumers. MapmyIndia’s comprehensive and accurate digital map content, combined with Qualcomm’s leadership in assisted GPS technology, will enable the most advanced and reliable location-based services with ubiquitous experience in open, indoor and complex urban environments. We see huge potential for location services in India, and look forward to working with MapmyIndia to address the demand for consumer and enterprise markets.”

 Kartheepan Madasamy, senior manager of India Investments from Qualcomm Ventures, said “This is a significant development for Qualcomm Ventures in its effort to foster innovation and bring enriched wireless experience to Indian consumers. MapmyIndia has built a strong business around digital maps, Personal Navigation Devices and Internet mapping offerings in India. We look forward to working closely with MapmyIndia to bring the most advanced location services experience to India, leveraging the best map content on mobile handsets and connected navigation devices.”

 

Suvir Sujan, Partner, Nexus India Capital, said “We are extremely glad that Qualcomm has joined the investor group of MapmyIndia, as this validates the leadership position and potential MapmyIndia has demonstrated in the digital mapping space. Qualcomm brings the right strategic experience, expertise and reach to benefit all – MapmyIndia, the industry, and end users.”

 

About Qualcomm Ventures

Qualcomm Ventures was launched in the United States in November 2000 with an initial US$500 million allocation. Qualcomm Ventures’ aim is to support Qualcomm’s mission of enabling and fostering 3G (WCDMA) and wireless Internet markets through strategic investments in privately owned startup ventures. These strategic investments include companies focusing on wireless communication technologies and products serving consumer, enterprise and vertical markets worldwide. After successfully expanding its activities in Korea, Japan, China and Europe, Qualcomm Ventures set up its India presence in 2008. Qualcomm Ventures’ first direct equity investment in India is in Tessolve Services Pvt. Ltd, a leading provider of solutions and platforms for semiconductor testing, packaging, qualification and failure analysis.  For more information, please visit: www.qualcomm.com/ventures

 

About MapmyIndia

MapmyIndia (CE Info Systems (P) Ltd.), a New Delhi-based ISO 9001-2000 Company founded in 1992, is India’s leader in premium quality digital map data and consumer navigation services. Since 1994, through continuous field surveys and state-of-the-art mapping technology, the company has built its proprietary MapmyIndia Maps, the most comprehensive, accurate, robust and reliable navigable map dataset for all India. MapmyIndia is driving the Indian navigation industry by providing internet, mobile and in-car navigation products to end consumers directly as well as in partnership with leading international and national players. The company has been providing GIS based enterprise solutions to over 500 leading corporate and government organizations in every vertical. In 2004, MapmyIndia was short listed by NASSCOM as a showcase company for IT innovation in India. Most recently, MapmyIndia’s Managing Director was elected by GPS Business News as the “World’s GPS Businessman for the year 2007” for driving the navigation industry in India.