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Audi, BMW, Daimler buy Nokia's Here digital mapping business

The fight for control of Nokia's Here digital mapping service appears to have drawn to a close as a consortium of German automakers has announced a deal to jointly acquire the business from the Finnish telecom giant. As anticipated, ownership in Here will now be taken over jointly by Audi, BMW, and Daimler, beating out reported rivals bids from the likes of Apple and Uber. Here is one of the largest and most advanced digital mapping and location systems. It started out in Chicago in 1986 as Navteq before Nokia acquired it in 2007, and is now slated to change ownership again. The cloud-based service maintains high-definition digital maps for nearly 200 countries and supports over 50 languages, gathering data from users to update the data continuously. Rather than transition the service into their own proprietary technology, however, the automakers insist that it will remain open "to all customers from the automotive industry and other sectors." Ownership will be shared equally between the three companies, with "none of them seek[ing] to acquire a majority interest" in Here. For another, Here's management is promised to remain independent, and "the consortium will not interfere into operational business." Though the purchase price has not been disclosed, it is rumored to be worth in the neighborhood of $2.7 billion. Assuming it passes regulatory approval, the acquisition is slated to be completed in the first quarter of next year. The German automakers anticipate implementing the service to provide connected vehicles with accurate, up-to-date information on road and other conditions. Examples it outlines include warning other drivers of icy conditions based on outside temperature and ABS activation. It could also warn drivers of impending traffic jams, or even guide traffic through green lights in an urban environment. In the future, the highly detailed maps are envisioned to enable fully automated driving as well. Related Video: AUDI AG, BMW Group and Daimler AG agree with Nokia Corporation on joint acquisition of HERE digital mapping business Ingolstadt, Munich, Stuttgart, Aug 03, 2015 - Acquisition will secure and strengthen HERE as an independent company serving customers from all industries - Real-time maps and location based services will be the basis for the mobility of tomorrow - Transaction expected to close in first quarter 2016 Ingolstadt, Munich, Stuttgart – August 3rd, 2015.

Maybach lost upwards of $500k on each vehicle sold

Daimler is shuttering Maybach in 2013 after seven years of production. In that time, the company's ultra-ultra-luxury arm managed to sell just 3,000 units, and CAR reports Daimler lost somewhere around $500,000 on each and every one of them.
Even with a ludicrous price tag of over $370,000 for an "entry" Maybach 57, the brand couldn't quite recoup the dizzying $1.33 billion Daimler poured into it since its (re)inception. Rumors ignited over a possible tie up with Aston Martin that would have resulted in a range of new and attractive models, but Daimler has instead decided to snuff out Maybach altogether.
We can hardly blame them.

Which car should win 2015 World Green Car of the Year?

There were three finalists for the World Green Car of the Year announced about a month ago at the Geneva Motor Show: the BMW i8, the Mercedes-Benz S 500 Plug-In Hybrid and the Volkswagen Golf GTE. With the New York Auto Show upon us and the winner scheduled to be announced tomorrow, we thought it's high time to ask our readers which one should win. There were seven other vehicles named to the finalists list: the Hyundai x35/Tucson Fuel Cell, the Volvo XC90 T8 Twin Engine, the Audi A3 Sportback E-Tron, the BMW X5 xDrive40e, the Kia Soul EV, the Nissan e-NV200 and the Opel Adam 1.0 Direct Injection Turbo ecoFLEX Start. Would you have named one of these to the top three list instead? POLL 14386429 Green BMW Mercedes-Benz Volkswagen 2015 ny auto show world green car of the year vw golf gte