Frost & Sullivan have conducted a study among European and Russian consumers that has revealed that Nokia is the number one choice for mobile navigation over other leading handset manufacturers.
Through this study the perceptions, understanding, expectations and motivations of European and Russian consumers towards navigation and location-based services were evaluated.
The following were the key objectives of the study. One was to analyse consumers’ awareness of, and level of satisfaction with different types of navigation systems. It also analysed the different features available in navigation systems, location-based services and other telematics features. Besides this, the study also aimed at evaluating consumers’ perceptions and willingness to pay for different types of navigation systems, their features and location-based services as well as determining consumers’ brand awareness and perception.
Frost & Sullivan states that GPS-enabled devices are a fast growing market segment in Europe. More than 30 million devices were shipped in 2008 and nearly 80 million devices anticipated to be shipped by 2010.
In all 3119 interviews were conducted for this survey in France, Germany, Italy, Spain, United Kingdom and Benelux. Additionally, 600 interviews were conducted in Russia. The study revealed that 62 percent of those who didn’t own a navigation system in Europe and 77 percent in Russia felt that Nokia was the leading brand for delivering mobile navigation. The percentage increased for current users of navigation systems with over 72 percent in Europe and 81 percent in Russia choosing Nokia as the best brand for delivering mobile navigation.
“Nokia has clearly excelled in identifying growth opportunities in a maturing mobile handset market by integrating GPS in a large number of its handsets, making them navigation-ready. With a target of enabling a majority of its new devices with the GPS feature by 2010, coupled with the acquisition of mapping and software companies like NAVTEQ and gate5, the company is clearly building a strong presence in the mobile navigation markets in Europe and elsewhere,” remarks N. Praveen Chandrasekar, Program Manager, Telematics and Infotainment at Frost & Sullivan. “This vertical integration strategy along with its position as the leading handset vendor puts the company in a good position to meet the needs of people both already using and considering mobile handset-based navigation systems.”
Frost & Sullivan suggests that Nokia’s acquisition of NAVTEQ last year has permitted it to forcefully enter the mobile navigation space with a strong product portfolio. The company has recently launched Ovi Maps for mobile and web through which it is expanding its market presence into the service space within the mobile navigation market.
Nokia is a worthy recipient of the Frost & Sullivan’s 2009 European and Russian Mobile Navigation Leading Brand Awareness Consumer Choice Award, thanks to its aggressive strategies in the mobile navigation market coupled with strong brand recognition among consumers.