Traffic jam could be considered as one of the most frustrating stuff in our daily lives. To help user outsmart traffic, Google was excited to announce they have closed the acquisition of Waze, which is a Google Maps competitor that relies on user data to build accurate maps with real-time traffic reports. The Internet-search giant didn’t disclose the purchase price, but a person familiar with the deal said it paid just over $1 billion for Waze, making it the fourth-largest deal in Google’s 15-year history.
[more…]
The Waze product development team will remain in Israel and operate separately for now. Google are prospecting to enhance Google Maps with some of the traffic update features provided by Waze and enhancing Waze with Google’s search capabilities. Google also said in its blog that they will work closely with the vibrant Waze community, who are the DNA of this app, to ensure they have what’s needed to grow and prosper.
Why not Waze stay completely independent? According to Waze, choosing the path of an IPO often shifts attention to bankers, lawyers and the happiness of Wall Street, and they decided they’d rather spend the time with the Waze community. Google is committed to help them achieve their common goal and provide them with the independence and resources they need to succeed. Waze evaluated many options and believe Google is the best partner for Waze, their map editors, area managers, champs and nearly 50 million Wazers globally.
Google welcomes Waze to Google and look forward to working with them in their ongoing effort to make a comprehensive, accurate and useful map of the world.
Read more:
http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2013/06/google-maps-and-waze-outsmarting.html
