Your favorite un-taxi service Uber Technologies Inc. has made a deal with a navigation company to get their hands on more digital maps and traffic data for their driver’s app. The Wall Street Journal reports that the Dutch navigation company, TomTom, will give Uber access to their trove of maps and data for more than 300 cities worldwide.
This doesn’t mean that Uber is replacing their current traffic information with TomTom’s, they’re just adding to their sources. They already use Google and Apple’s mapping technology, TomTom is just one more on the list. It makes sense because Uber wants to have as much traffic information as possible so they can broaden their reach across the world, and get into self-driving cars.
WSJ also reported earlier this year that Uber was attempting to acquire Nokia Corp.’s digital mapping business, but failed. TomTom reportedly made Uber an offer that was cheaper than the billions it would have costed them to acquire Nokia. And TomTom stands to benefit from becoming part of Uber’s expansion plans.
TomTom is an independent provider of digital maps, and today that’s a rare thing. WSJ reports that on Thursday, shares in TomTom rose almost 8 percent in Amsterdam, and have risen more than 100 percent over the course of 2015.
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