Bridgestone Europe buys TomTom Telematics in €910m mobility deal

The telematics business of data provider TomTom is to be snapped up by the European arm of Bridgestone in a €910m cash deal. Part of the Bridgestone Corporation tyre empire, Bridgestone Europe says the deal will speed up its “journey to becoming a mobility solutions leader in the region”. Bridgestone is making fleet solutions a “strategic priority”. In a statement, the company said: “New social, economic and technological megatrends are pushing the pace of change in the automotive industry and the fut
February 1, 2019 Read time: 2 mins
The telematics business of data provider 1692 TomTom is to be snapped up by the European arm of Bridgestone in a €910m cash deal.


Part of the Bridgestone Corporation tyre empire, Bridgestone Europe says the deal will speed up its “journey to becoming a mobility solutions leader in the region”.

Bridgestone is making fleet solutions a “strategic priority”. In a statement, the company said: “New social, economic and technological megatrends are pushing the pace of change in the automotive industry and the future of vehicles is connected, autonomous, shared and electric.”

Bridgestone has diversified from the rubber products for which it is best-known into data collection from sensors, data platforms and analytics.

It cites the “growing importance of fleets over individually-owned vehicles for transportation of people and goods” as the catalyst for the acquisition, suggesting that fleet owners require better tools to maximise productivity and minimise total cost of ownership.
Paolo Ferrari, CEO of Bridgestone EMEA, says: “We are now well-positioned in EMEA to accelerate our data-driven business, expand our fleet customer base and seize fast-growing, profitable opportunities in the automotive mobility industry.”

TomTom CEO Harold Goddijn said his company would continue to develop mapping products, “enabling faster map updates while lowering operational costs, paving the road towards autonomous driving”.

TomTom Telematics claims an installed user base of 860,000 vehicles, more than two-thirds of which are commercial. The company says it handles each day on average 800 million GPS positions, 3.3 million trips and 200 million inbound messages.

Location Based Systems

Related Content

  • March 16, 2017
    TomTom Telematics collaborates with SOTI on fleet management
    TomTom Telematics is to collaborate with SOTI on a project that will see the SOTI’s enterprise mobility management software, MobiControl, made available to manage TomTom PRO 8 series driver terminals. SOTI MobiControl gives fleet managers complete remote control of the TomTom PRO 8 series, an open-platform device that is easily customised with apps to meet the needs of specific users and functions. Content and user profiles on devices are managed centrally, so drivers have access to the most appropriate
    Read More
  • March 27, 2013
    TomTom expands fleet management integration possibilities
    TomTom has expanded the functionalities of its connected car technology and extended the integration possibilities for its fleet management solution to help companies manage their mobile operations more efficiently. TomTom Business Solutions is allowing third-party developers to create new applications for use in and around the vehicle. This has been enabled by granting access to the Bluetooth channel on its in-vehicle Link device. TomTom’s open API on both its hardware and software enables technology partn
    Read More
  • September 8, 2016
    Research ranks Bosch, Harman, and Continental as leading Tier One connected car vendors
    ABI Research ranks Bosch as the leader among 20 Tier One connected car suppliers considered in its latest competitive analysis. Harman and Continental received second and third place, respectively. Bosch's explosive sales growth last year, significant capital expenditures to fund future development, cadre of strategic partnerships, and commitment to advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) solutions place it in a strong position to pioneer the continuing evolution of the automotive industry.
    Read More
  • October 22, 2015
    TomTom launches its traffic service in Hong Kong
    TomTom is to launch its traffic service in Hong Kong, which it says is the fourth most densely populated metropolis in the world, with 7.2 million inhabitants. TomTom provides accurate traffic information for highways, major roads and secondary roads in 48 countries. TomTom Traffic includes congestion forecasting, which indicates whether a jam is growing or dispersing, and estimates how long a delay will last. According to TomTom data, the busiest hour of the day for traffic in Hong Kong is between 8a
    Read More

Highlighted Content