Telmap’s Navigator service to be embedded on the majority of O2 handsets

August 10, 2009 -- O2 today announces an agreement with Telmap which will see its personal navigation and mapping service made available to O2 customers on the majority of GPS-enabled handsets sold by O2. To ensure the best possible customer experience, O2 has worked closely with Telmap to optimize the application for use on the O2 network and will be providing first level customer support and billing support.

Telmap’s Navigator offers a rich mapping and GPS navigation experience with features including in-car 3D maps with text-to-speech technology, traffic alerts with alternative route options and turn by turn directions while walking. O2 customers will also benefit from access to relevant content including places and businesses, event ticketing, restaurant listings and reviews amongst other premium services. O2 will also incorporate points of interest such as O2 Academy venues and Wi-Fi hotspots.

In addition to providing customer service, O2 will make it easy for customers to pay for the Telmap service by integrating the subscription charge onto their mobile phone bill. O2 will also offer the chance for customers to try the service for 14 days before they decide to buy.

“This is a pioneering agreement between operator and application developer which we believe will set a benchmark for future agreements,” said Peter Rampling, O2’s Marketing Director. “We have worked closely with Telmap to build a service wrap around the application which we believe will offer the best customer experience. Navigation is fast becoming one of the most popular mobile services and we look forward to bringing this leading application to our customers.”

“This is a very important agreement for Telmap and we are excited to be starting this relationship with O2”, said Oren Nissim, CEO of Telmap. “There is a strong synergy between O2, a leading, innovative operator and Telmap’s innovative technology and vast experience; we believe this collaboration will allow us to deliver the best in class solution to O2 customers and for O2 to create a winning location strategy in the marketplace”.

The first new handsets from O2 with the application embedded will appear on the market in the autumn. There will be a range of subscription packages available, starting from £3.50 per month. Existing customers will also be able to download the application if they have a compatible handset.

The agreement with O2 in the UK will form a framework for future agreements between Telmap and Telefónica operations globally.