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Renault-Nissan, tyre-maker Continental reportedly on verge of taking a stake in Nokia’s former mapping unit.
The consortium of German carmakers that owns Nokia’s former mapping business Here could soon welcome some new members, if recent comments by Daimler CEO Dieter Zetsche are to be believed.
Daimler, along with rivals Audi and BMW, took control of Here in December 2015. Last week, the group named Cisco executive Edzard Overbeek as the company’s new CEO.
Here’s new parents have set their sights on four areas: smarter urban mobility; intelligent public transport services; tools for enterprises and governments; and enabling increasingly automated, and, ultimately, fully autonomous driving.
To realise its vision, the group said it is open to forming strategic partnerships, and to new investors.
In a report by Reuters on Sunday, Zetsche said that Here’s parents are in talks with potential new consortium members.
"I do not think it will take very long until the first company gives a binding commitment to join," he said in the report.
According to the newswire, tyre-maker Continental and the Renault-Nissan alliance are considering taking a stake in the Here consortium – Renault-Nissan in January revealed it has hired Here’s former senior vice president of automotive, Ogi Redzic, as SVP of connected vehicles and mobility services.
"Interest will not only be limited to Renault-Nissan and Continental," Zetsche said.
