Benefon TWIG Discovery GPS Mobile Phone Employs Embedded Mapping Engine from Telcontar

location based services

Telcontar’s Rich Map Engine® Powers Innovative, Fully-Integrated Device
London, UK – Telcontar, the leading supplier of software platforms and services for the Location-Based Services (LBS) industry, has announced that its Rich Map Engine (RME) software is being used by Benefon to location-enable the company’s newly introduced TWIG Discovery GPS/GSM handset.
Launched at 3GSM World Congress, in Barcelona, Spain, the TWIG Discovery combines GPS-enabled navigation with GSM telephony. The TWIG Discovery provides a wide range of location-based and navigation applications that include routing with voice prompted turn-by-turn instructions and points of interest, which can be updated on-the-fly. It also includes current speed, SMS messaging, family & friends finding and tracking, real-time traffic reports, speed/safety camera positions and SOS messages.
Jonathan Bate, CEO of Benefon commented, "In our continuing drive to ensure and deliver unmatched services and performance to the consumer, we’ve deployed Telcontar’s best-in-class engine in our new TWIG Discovery. Users will enjoy the stunning benefits of anywhere navigation in an easy-to-use handset. Our technology relationship with Telcontar makes the mapping and routing capabilities of the TWIG Discovery truly industry-leading.”
Telcontar’s patented RME enables the calculation of the best route, including support for user-defined routes and feature navigability, as well as multi-modal routing (e.g., pedestrian, ferry). It allows real-time integration of map information with GPS to determine position, and has the ability to edit, customise and download maps over the air. RME can be deployed in mobile devices such as wireless phones and Personal Navigation Devices (PNDs), and in server deployments where it’s used today to produce over a billion maps and routes each month on leading Internet portals. With field-proven success in a wide variety of applications, Telcontar’s RME is ideal for LBS applications requiring superior client-side functionality.
“As the technology for GPS-enabled handsets is deployed, the combination of location-based services and telephony brings the consumer an exceptionally useful device,” said J. Kim Fennell, president and CEO for Telcontar. “This exciting convergence of capabilities is made significantly easier through the use of our powerful Rich Map Engine software. We are delighted to be working with Benefon on such an exciting project, and look forward to seeing the TWIG Discovery roll out across GSM networks worldwide.”
About Benefon
Founded in 1988 in Finland by the early GSM pioneers, BENEFON is a leader in GSM/GPS mobile telematics terminals and solutions. Benefon is now at the forefront of innovation and research in mobile telephony and GPS navigation. It is now with the birth of TWIG that BENEFON is able to truly offer the world a navigation system and a series of TWIG handsets that can be easily understood and enjoyed in both professional and leisure contexts. For more information please visit: www.benefon.com or www.twigme.com.
About Telcontar
Telcontar provides the enabling geospatial software platform that powers today’s leading location-based applications. The company specializes in providing solutions ideal for Internet, mobile and telematics applications where scalability, speed and reliability are vital. Its Drill Down Server® geospatial software platform and Rich Map Engine powers today’s most successful and widely deployed LBS applications. Telcontar customers and technology partners include AND, Appello, Ask, ATX, Google, Hutchison Mobile, Local Matters, Motorola, NAVTEQ, Networks In Motion, Pharos, Rand McNally, TeleAtlas, and Yahoo!. Telcontar is privately held and headquartered in San Jose, California with European offices in the United Kingdom and France. Additional information about Telcontar, its products and services, and past press releases can be found at the Company's Web site: www.telcontar.com.
Telcontar, Drill Down Server, and Rich Map Engine are trademarks or registered trademarks of Telcontar in the United States and/or other countries. All other product or company names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
Aimee Macaitis (aimee@msrcommunications.com)Phone: 415.447.6115 ext