deCarta Unveils Turn-key Application for Personal Navigation Devices

deCarta Unveils Turn-key Application for Personal Navigation Devices

March 13, 2007

Streamlines Design Through Market-Delivery Timelines


    HANOVER, Germany, March 13 /Xinhua-PRNewswire/ --
deCarta, the leading supplier of software platforms and
services for the Location-Based Services (LBS) industry,
today announced the launch of a turn-key navigation
application for use in personal navigation devices (PNDs).
The new navigation application allows manufacturers of PNDs
and smartphones to bring a custom-branded navigation
application to market quickly and with minimal development
time. 

    ABI Research estimates that 14 million personal
navigation devices were sold in 2006, and the market is
expected to reach 24 million units in 2007. As competition
drives the need for product differentiation and fast
time-to-market, deCarta's navigation application offers
manufacturers a fully-featured product that can be used as
delivered, or customized to reflect a unique look that
reinforces the manufacturer's brand identity.

    "The personal navigation market is growing by
leaps and bounds," said Clint Wheelock, vice president
of research for ABI Research. "Ready-made navigation
applications that provide quicker time to market are a
viable option for both new vendors and established players
looking to gain a competitive edge in capitalizing on this
tremendous market opportunity."

    The deCarta navigation application has been designed to
emphasize ease-of-use for drivers with intuitive menus that
allow them to access commands in a convenient manner.
deCarta's navigation application can be used in a
stand-alone mode or can be paired with the company's
industry-standard Drill Down Server(TM) (DDS) for use in
connected navigation applications.

    deCarta's navigation application employs deCarta's
market-leading Rich Map Engine, the same software platform
known for its speed and accuracy in powering leading
Internet and wireless LBS applications at Verizon, Sprint,
Cingular, TeliaSonera, Google, Yahoo! and Ask.com. The
software is compatible with Windows Mobile(R) and is
specifically designed for porting for use on Windows(R)
CE-based PNDs, and supports a wide range of features
demanded by drivers:

    -- Full-featured navigation functionality including 2-D
and
       bird's-eye view maps
    -- One-touch access to all key navigation features and
       controls 
    -- Flexible routing files (i.e., Waypoints, Shortest,
Fastest;
       including/excluding toll roads, freeway, ferry,
tunnels,
       car / train)
    -- Easy method for selecting a destination or POI
(i.e., 
       Category, Nearby, Key-word search, ZIP/Postal code)
    -- Compressed map data for small storage footprint on
Flash
       and HDD media
    -- Map-matching and support for both GPS and
dead-reckoning
       sensors
    -- Writable indices allowing download of customized
Point
       of Interest or traffic incident data
    -- Customizable voice prompts and guidance and
advisory
       instructions

    The turn-key navigation application is also designed to
be used with the DDS in connected navigation applications
that combine personal navigation with dynamic content for a
more interesting driving experience. Routes calculated by
the driver on the PND can be populated with relevant
information useful to the driver such as restaurants, gas
stations and gas prices, parking spaces or traffic
incidents. deCarta's DDS is a server-based location
platform that powers many of the most successful
location-based applications on the Internet and mobile
applications, offering extremely fast performance and
scalability to mass market application. As a benefit to the
customer, this enables Internet-based location services to
be quickly pushed to the client PND.

    Navigation Application Screen Detail Example:
http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20070312/SFM109 

    The deCarta navigation application complements the
company's Navigation SDK, introduced last year. The
Navigation SDK is a software developer's environment that
enables easier, efficient development of a customized
navigation system for PNDs. To help accelerate development,
sample applications are available in source code to
illustrate the use of all the navigation functionality
supported. The navigation application builds on the core
functionality of the SDK with a complete user interface.

    "The release of our turn-key PND application
completes an entire suite of comprehensive capabilities
that PND and smartphone developers can leverage to capture
this explosive market with maximum efficiency," said
J. Kim Fennell, president and CEO of deCarta. "Our
turn-key PND application, navigation SDK and Drill Down
Server platform provide a clear migration path for
stand-alone to connected personal navigation
devices."

    About deCarta

    deCarta is the leading geospatial software platform
that powers today's most successful Location-Based Services
(LBS) applications such as those deployed at Google Maps,
Yahoo, Ask.com, Verizon and Sprint. The company's unique,
patented technology is ideal for high-volume LBS
applications for use in Internet, mobile, personal
navigation and enterprise applications where scalability,
speed, and reliability are vital. Its Drill Down Server
geospatial software platform, Rich Map Engine and Hosted
Web Service are preferred by application developers and
service providers who also want the flexibility to
customize map styles, utilize unique routing capabilities
and self brand. deCarta customers and technology partners
include AND, Appello, Ask.com, ATX, AutoTrader.com, Google,
Hotels.com, Local Matters, Maps.com, Motorola, NAVTEQ,
Networks In Motion, Pharos, Rand McNally, Tele Atlas,
TeleNav, TopTable.com, Yahoo! and Zillow. deCarta is
privately held and headquartered in San Jose, California
with international offices in the UK and China.
http://www.decarta.com .

    NOTE:  deCarta, the deCarta logo and Drill Down Server
are trademarks or registered trademarks of deCarta, Inc. in
the United States and/or other countries. All other product
or company names are trademarks or registered trademarks of
their respective holders.


    For more information, please contact:

     Chris Blake
     MSR Communications
     Tel:   [phone]
     Email: [e-mail]

     Robert Young Director
     Marketing Communications, deCarta
     Tel:   [phone]
     Email: [e-mail]