According to Bloomberg and WSJ Nokia has found a buyer for its HERE mapping unit. The buyers are BMW, Audi and Mercedes who will reportedly pay $2.7 billion. Nokia has sought as much as $4 billion for HERE, people familiar with the matter have said. Other companies that had been rumored to be involved in the bidding for HERE included Uber and several Chinese companies.
An agreement could be reached as early as next week, with an announcement targeted for around July 31, said the people, who asked not to be named because the negotiations are private. Audi, BMW, and Daimler plan to invite other automotive companies to buy a stake in the business.
The three German companies use HERE Maps in their in-dash navigation systems and recognize mapping and navigation as a strategic asset for further development of self-driving cars. HERE provided mapping data for a 32-acre (13-hectare) simulated city being used to test self-driving cars in Michigan.
According to the sources, the trio of carmakers won’t be keeping Here Maps to themselves and the platform is rumored to be open source. That would give all major vehicle manufacturers an alternative to Google Maps and other traditional mapping companies, like TomTom.
