TomTom has spent a
lot of time in research and development for the Indian market to
understand what the consumer wants before launching their products.
Their systems use very accurate algorithms and up to date maps along to
take you quickly and safely to your destination. Read on to know about
TomTom's product range and plans for the Indian market
The typical scene of Indian roads is one where people stop hastily on
the side of the road, roll down the window and ask for directions. 70%
of the streets in India do not have names and this creates a big
confusion in finding an exact location. Stopping on the side of the road
in a hurry is also a safety hazard to pedestrians, two wheels and cars
alike.
TomTom has been in India for ten years now and over the years they
have studied the Indian traffic psyche to understand what would be of
most use in a satellite navigation system in India. TomTom has also
built their maps from scratch because according to their survey the
biggest problem in India was the lack of a reliable map.
TomTom is a company based in Amsterdam, they have been around for
twenty years now and are listed on the Amsterdam Stock Exchange. Their
research and development units are based in Holland, USA and in Pune,
India. TomTom’s strategy in India has been based on the long run which
is why they took time to develop an India centric system as a whole.
TomTom believes in developing driver friendly satellite navigation
systems to make the experience of commuting and looking for a place
easy. TomTom have launched their ‘Via Series’ in India, which consists
of three units, the Via 100, Via 120 and the Via 125. The satellite
navigation units will be priced at Rs. 15,000, Rs. 17,000 and Rs. 19,000
respectively.
The new systems will have a unique feature developed for India called
‘Landmark Navigation’, this feature will help people find locations on
unnamed streets by being able to input a landmark near the destination.
Other standard features in these systems will allow drivers to change
maps and share it with their friends. The systems will also provide real
time traffic information to drivers
The maps of India developed by TomTom for their systems cover nearly a
100% of more than 5000 towns and cities in India. The systems can be
had with an 11cm screen or a 13 cm screen. The Via 120 and 125 models
come with Bluetooth phone connectivity and Voice Control functionality
which lets drivers seek destinations by voice commands without taking
their hands off the steering wheel.
Apart from making satellite navigation systems TomTom sells its map
to companies on the internet such as Google. They also sell their maps
to mobile phone companies and to the Government for planning purposes.
TomTom has 33 million kilometres of road network on the face of the
earth recorded on their database.
TomTom has had global experience in manufacturing and selling their
satellite navigation (sat-nav) systems. They came up with their first
Portable Navigation Device (PNV) in 2004. In Europe 15% of passenger
vehicles from Renault used
to be equipped with a sat-nav system. Today, 50% of Renault cars leave
the factory with an integrated sat-nav system from TomTom. TomTom plans
to bring about a similar revolution in India. They are in talks with car
makers across the price band in our country. Jocelyn Vigreux, General
Manager and Senior Vice-President of TomTom India said that they are in
talks with car makers in India and the response is positive. It should
not be long before the average passenger vehicle in India comes equipped
with a satellite navigation system.
TomTom satellite navigation systems will be available at Reliance
Digital, Reliance Autozone and in about 70 more car accessories shops
across India.
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