TomTom (company)

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TomTom International BV is a Netherlands-based maker of in-car navigation systems.

All of their units feature a flying interface with a bird's-eye view of the road, as well as a direct-overhead map view. All current TomTom systems also integrate with mobile phones to varying degrees, to show traffic congestion maps or to actually take calls and read aloud SMS messages. One of the latest features is to warn drivers about speed cameras.

One of their systems, the TomTom RIDER, is unusual in having been designed specifically for motorcycle and motorscooter users.

Products

TomTom offers three types of products:

TomTom Navigator software for users of PDAs and Pocket PCs
TomTom GO integrated in-car navigation system
TomTom Mobile for users of smartphones makes a car navigation system of the user's mobile telephone

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 business 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 renamed the company TomTom. TomTom launched the first mobile car navigation system, TomTom Navigator. TomTom Navigator was a killer app for Pocket PC based PDAs and became a huge success.

By the time that TomTom Navigator 2 came on the market in spring of 2003, it was already clear that people without a PDA also wanted fast direct navigation from point A to point B. TomTom persuaded Mark Gretton, ex-CTO of Psion and maker of the original Psion series 3, to come on board, 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 run 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.

External links

AEX companies of the Netherlands
ABN AMRO \| AEGON \| Ahold \| Akzo Nobel \| ASML \| Buhrmann \| DSM \| Fortis \| Getronics \| Hagemeyer \| Heineken \| ING Group \| KPN \| Numico \| Philips \| Reed Elsevier \| Royal Dutch Shell \| SBM Offshore \| TomTom \| TNT \| Unilever \| Vedior \| VNU \| Wolters Kluwer

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