“There have been rumors for the past few months that a big tech firm is looking to acquire Waze, a popular traffic navigation app,” Laurie Segal reports for CNNMoney.
“Most recently, rumors that Google is interested in Waze have been making the rounds,” Segal reports. “But Apple and Facebook have also been named as possible bidders.”
Segal reports, “So why is there so much buzz about Waze? The company, which initially launched in Israel, provides crowdsourced information. Users can wave their hands over their mobile device while driving to vocally report traffic or hazardous conditions. Updating in real time based on that information, the app delivers accurate assessments of current traffic, road closures, and alternative routes efficiently. ‘What a lot of people don’t know about Waze is on the front end we’re an app, but we are also making our own maps. This is something very few people can do,’ said Di-Ann Eisnor, vice president of platforms and partnerships for Waze.”
Read more in the full article here.
Related articles:
Google, like Facebook, in talks to buy Waze for $1 billion; Apple not part of discussions – May 24, 2013
Facebook in talks to buy Waze for as much as $1 billion – May 10, 2013
Will Apple top Facebook’s $1 billion bid for Waze? – May 9, 2013
Apple did offer to buy Israeli startup Waze, but Waze politely declined, sources say – January 4, 2013
Apple using Waze data in new iOS 6 Maps – June 13, 2012
like Instagram and all the small shops that Facebook bought, Waze is hard at work pumping up their perceived valuation using the court of public opinion. I don’t think that their feature set can’t be reverse engineered by other mapping / database sources, like the ones Apple or Google have partnered with. Facebook stands to benefit more since this would be their first foray into maps / way-finding
Yup.
Apple should keep their hands oin their pockets. Buying start ups for $Bn is a mugs game. If you shell out £1Bn what is the true ROI ? Would it help Apple sell another 1 million Iphones above targets – probably not.
Waze Utter Waste of money.
Do Not Waste $ or time on Waze!
$1B!?!
what is wrong with this world.
$1B for Instagram by FB
$1.1B for tumblr by Yahoo
what’s next, buying a piece of ass in Heaven?!
how the F do they waste so many resources that could be used much more wisely for real good in the world?!
how the F do you justify $1B on such apps/services, that are nothing special or ingenious, except for being popular, and none of which are amortizable or profitable?!
this is a weird, banal, stupid, irresponsible trend.
people do not realize what $1B is!
everyone mentions such sums as it’s become normal for corporate expenditures nowadays, but it does not change the fact that
1. we have no idea how much that is
2. we don’t stop to think: try to earn it!
3. we take it for granted
4. we don’t stop to realize corps. earn our cash & have the right to spend it as they wish but
a. why not improve the apps/services with our $ for our gain
b. why waste so much of our $ when in reality it will not save our favorite firms from competition & even destroy them
c. why, if stuck on wasting $, not spend it for real purposes that do improve the world
if you have so much money to waste, why not spend some on fighting Monsanto which keeps winning increasingly more power in USA & though politically correct is heinously morally incorrect & destroying democracy?! MoveOn.org & others need funding to fight this total abuse of our rights. so who gives a F @ Waze meanwhile?
Map apps are just in their infancy and will become the ‘go to’ app for the real world commerce. People generally buy things in their own neighbourhood an if a map company can leverage their knowledge of not only where a store is but what is in it for sale, they can be an even more powerful ‘yellow pages’ and drive customers to businesses.
Suppose you want an ice cream treat and ask your map app where the nearest or best or combination thereof, the map company could get a referral fee. If your map app knows that you stop into fast food places regularly at lunch, it could show nearby favourite places and again get a referral fee. The app could also unscrupulously route you near stores that advertise with the map company.
What? You can wave your hand over a mobile device to vocally report! How can a device detect hand gestures? I know little about Waze, but that is sounding a little to magical to work.
Proximity sensors.
Why is Waze a hit takeover target?
Because Apple seems incapable of building a decent aping app?
Mapping app.
Yes, they leave the aping apps to Google.
An App like this that relys on user input to stay accurate can not work or be trusted in the long run. I think most people will get tired of constantly having to provide feedback to the App for free. I think the hype keeps this alive.