Mapping services aren’t just a tool for you to find your way around town, these services are what’s going to power the autonomous vehicles of the future. Most of these services rest in the hands of technology giants like Apple and Google, both of which are interested in self-driving vehicles and are in a perfect position to gain control of the industry while it’s still in its infancy. This is something that automotive leaders want to prevent, which is why a trio of automakers are “preparing to launch a formal bid” for Nokia’s HERE mapping service to help catch up with Apple and Google.
Germany’s big-three premium-brand auto makers are preparing to launch a formal bid to acquire a majority stake in Nokia Corp.’s Here mapping unit, in a consortium that includes Chinese technology group Baidu Inc. and values Here at “considerably more than €2 billion,” according to people familiar with the situation. BMW AG, Audi AG, and Daimler AG’s Mercedes-Benz are usually fierce rivals in the market for luxury automobiles. But they are so worried about Silicon Valley’s ambitions that they are banding together to acquire Nokia’s mapping unit to prevent a technology giant such as Google Inc.,Apple Inc. or Facebook Inc. from gaining control of a key part of the technology needed to run self-driving cars and in-car digital services. “The greatest threat to the automobile industry would be if Google developed an operating system for self-driving cars and made it available free to everyone,” said a person familiar with the situation. “We need the map for the operating system in the cars.” Talks have reached an advanced stage and are likely to conclude within the next two weeks, according to people familiar with the situation. Specific details such as price and the distribution of specific stakes are still in flux, these people said.
