Internet search giant Google, Inc. (GOOG) is set to acquire Israeli GPS navigation app maker Waze, Inc. for about $1.3 billion in a bid to boost its navigation offerings on mobiles, according to media reports on Sunday that quoted Israeli Financial daily Globes. The deal is expected to be officially announced as early as Monday morning.
Google, which recently overhauled its Google Maps, is now looking to add a new real-time navigation service to its portfolio through the acquisition of Waze.
Waze is currently said to be the real competition for Google's navigation offerings on mobile, and did want it to go into the hands of competition.
The reported deal would end months of talks surrounding the fate of the five-year-old Waze. The acquisition talks for Waze underscore the growing importance of mapping in the battle for consumer loyalty to mobile devices.
Waze came into limelight after reports that social networking giant Facebook, Inc. (FB) was courting it for a deal nearing $1 billion. However, talks that began in early May were called off recently after they failed to reach an agreement.
Facebook, which even conducted due diligence on the deal, was looking to buy Waze to compete better with the likes of Google and Apple, Inc. (AAPL) as more and more of its users turn to smartphones for access.
Waze is said to have been looking for bids in excess of $1 billion and had attracted expressions of interest from multiple parties, including from another giant suitor Apple, which is rumored to have offered $400 million for Waze few months ago.
The deal reportedly fell through as Apple was not ready to raise the offer. Apple is currently using some Waze data in its iOS 6 Maps service, which users complained about being inaccurate immediately after its launch.
At a time when Apple was facing users wrath related to its iOS 6 Maps service, Apple CEO Tim Cook had recommended Waze as an alternative to Apple Maps, along with others such as Bing, MapQuest, Google Maps or Nokia maps.
Waze is consistently one of the top downloads at Apple's App Store and Google Play, the store for Android phones.
Waze is the world's fastest-growing community-based traffic and navigation app. It is a free social GPS application featuring turn-by-turn navigation, developed by the Israeli start-up Waze Mobile for GPS-enabled smartphones with a data plan.
Waze won the Best Overall Mobile App award at the 2013 Mobile World Congress, and was also named Best Connected Product of the 2013 Webby Awards on May 22. Waze, a community-based traffic and navigation app, was founded in 2008 in Israel by Uri Levine, software engineer Ehud Shabtai, and Amir Shinar. The company was originally called Linqmap.
Waze generates traffic data and maps using satellite signals from the smartphones of its members. This is shared with other members, thus providing real-time traffic info. Waze has nearly 50 million users.
The company has so far raised $67 million in funding, including from chipmaker Qualcomm Inc., Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers and Blue Run Ventures. Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) is also reportedly is an investor in Waze.
GOOG closed Friday's regular trading session at $879.73, up $15.09 or 1.75% on a volume of 2.68 million shares.
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