Nokia’s Here Maps have suddenly become the talk of the town with an increased demand from a number of buyers. Now, Uber has become the latest interested buyer, as per a latest post from the New York Times.
The report said that Uber has offered a bid of $3 billion for Nokia’s Here Maps. Just yesterday, it was reported that that European carmakers BMW, Daimler’s Mercedes-Benz and Audi along with China’s Baidu – are preparing for a formal bid to acquire majority stake in Nokia’s Here mapping unit. Earlier this week, Facebook teamed up with Nokia bring HERE Maps to its mobile version of its site, as well as Facebook Messenger and Instagram on Android.
In March, Uber made its first acquisition by scooping up mapping tech startup deCarta. At present Uber uses Google Maps data to power its apps for drivers and riders but this could change if Uber wins the bid to acquire Nokia Here maps. Nokia’s mapping business holds more than an 80 percent global market share for built-in car navigation systems. The company announced in April that it was considering selling Here. Nokia is expected to announce the sale of Here Maps by the end if this month.