Orange unveils Sat Nav offering

Orange has launched a new GPS navigation application that business users can download and enjoy on a variety of mobile devices.

By making such a move, the mobile phone giant hopes to capitalise on users' growing appetite for satellite navigation, in a market that expects to top 14 million units, some one million of which will be smartphone-based, in the UK by the end of this year.

The offering is likely to gain particular favour with companies who have a proportion of staff who spend a lot of time on the road as it is device agnostic.

Orange's business division has teamed up with Webraska to create the offering, which it has dubbed 'Sat-Nav from Orange.'

The new service will feature Navteq maps and live traffic updates, all of which will be stored on a central server and made available for download using Wi-Fi, 3G, GPRS or Orange's own EDGE network onto a range of smartphones and personal digital assistants (PDAs).

The main service costs 150 plus VAT, which includes the necessary licensing, GPS receiver and in-car charger, with downloads charged on a per data usage basis.

The add-on services, such as real-time traffic information and European maps, will each cost an additional 27.59 plus VAT.

"Using Sat-Nav on your mobile means businesses can save time and money," said Gareth Williams, group manager for solution products at Orange Business Services.

"It is easy to use and enables businesses to streamline the number of devices they have to purchase and manage."

Industry expects like analyst Canalys are expecting market growth, which has doubled year-on-year recently, to continue to gain momentum.

But its research suggests that many mobile players still haven't embraced the opportunity.

"Most of the mobile operators still aren't awake to the huge potential of mobile navigation, and it comes a long way down on their priority list, after higher-risk plays like mobile TV," said Chris Jones, director and principal analyst at Canalys in a report published in August.

"It shouldn't. It is perhaps the purest form of location-based service, and has huge potential, not just in terms of subscriber numbers and as a revenue stream in itself, but also as a way of changing customer perception of what a phone is for, thus building a foundation for the delivery of other information services through the handset."

Orange is hoping its foray into this market will bear fruits, both financially and in terms of competitive advantage.

"The location based service market is currently around 55m and estimated to double by 2009 according to the Yankee Group," added Williams.

"Orange is well placed to capitalise on this opportunity through our brand, channel reach, customer service and understanding of how applications work in a mobile environment."