TomTom
| TomTom NV | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Type | Public Euronext: TOM2 |
| Founded | 1991 |
| Headquarters | Amsterdam, the Netherlands |
| Key people | Harold Goddijn, Chairman and CEO |
| Industry | ICT / Electronics |
| Products | Navigation software Navigation hardware |
| Revenue |  € 1364 million
(2006) |
| Net income | € 222 million
(2006) |
| Employees | 818 (2005) |
| Slogan | The smart choice in personal navigation. Go confidently. |
| Website | www.tomtom.com |
TomTom NV (Euronext: TOM2) is a Dutch manufacturer of automotive navigation systems, including both stand-alone units and software for personal digital assistants, and mobile telephones. It is the leading manufacturer of navigation systems in Europe[citation needed] with worldwide offices in Amsterdam, London, Massachusetts and Taiwan.
The global slogan for TomTom is "the smart choice in personal navigation". In the United States and Canada, they currently use "Go confidently".
History
In 1991, Peter-Frans Pauwels and Pieter Geelen, having both just graduated from the University of Amsterdam, started the company Palmtop to develop applications for the first generation of hand held computers. At that time, most of the applications were for corporate use, but with the success of the Psion series, it became clear that individuals also had need of personal organizers. The company started commercial development of applications, including various dictionaries, personal finance products, games and route planners.
These applications brought worldwide sales which made it possible to add Corinne Vigreux to the team in 1994. The hand held market expanded rapidly, especially after the success of the Palm Pilot in 1996, and the rise of the first Microsoft OS based devices. Palmtop developed applications for all these devices.
In 2001, Harold Goddijn, ex-CEO of Psion, became the fourth full partner, and changed the company's name to TomTom. TomTom launched the first mobile car navigation system, TomTom Navigator.
TomTom Navigator 2 came on the market in spring of 2003. TomTom persuaded Mark Gretton, ex-CTO of Psion to head a hardware team to develop an all new navigation product. Alexander Ribbink, ex-Vice President of Brand Development at Mars Incorporated, came to TomTom in November 2003 to drive marketing of the growing range of products. TomTom Go, a standalone in-car navigation system, was brought out in spring of 2004. In the autumn, the company announced TomTom Mobile, a new navigation solution which runs a car navigation system on a smartphone.
TomTom went public on May 27, 2005. The shares are listed on Euronext Amsterdam under the symbol TOM2. The company raised approximately 125 million Euros at its IPO. Tomtom joined the AEX index as of March 2, 2006.
Products and services
TomTom offers four types of products:
- TomTom GO and ONE – various portable models for automobile navigation.
- TomTom RIDER – portable model for motorcycle and motorscooter users.
- TomTom NAVIGATOR – software for users of PDAs and Pocket PCs.
- TomTom Mobile – software for mobile phones.
TomTom units provide a flying interface with a bird's-eye view of the road, as well as a direct-overhead map view. They use a GPS receiver to show the precise location and provide visual and spoken directions on how to drive to the chosen destination. Certain TomTom systems also integrate with mobile phones using Bluetooth, to show traffic congestion maps or to actually take calls and read aloud SMS messages. The company offers a line of fee-based services under the name TomTom PLUS, which include services to warn drivers about speed cameras, provide weather updates, change voices and provide traffic alerts. The PLUS section of the Tomtom website suffered an outage on August 24th 2007, drawing some criticism[1]. TomTom's customer service is located in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.
See also
External links
- Official site
- Unofficial User Forums and Mobile Version
- OpenTom wiki style information site
- Pocket GPS World's TomTom Forum
- "wiki"-style Point of Interest system to warn of out of date areas or mistakes on TomTom maps
- Installing Safety Camera databases on TomTom devices
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