December 22, 2011 – Telit Communications Plc, a global provider of machine-to-machine (M2M) wireless technology, yesterday entered into a binding agreement to purchase Navman Wireless OEM Solutions, LP, a designer and manufacturer of Global Positioning System (GPS) modules and solutions, for US$3 million in cash. The acquisition of Navman’s technology and its US-based executive engineering and sales staff will make Telit a major contender in the GPS market while providing an enhanced product portfolio for its M2M customers. Navman is expected to generate approximately $7.1 million of revenue and $0.2m of EBITDA in the year to 31 December 2011.
The acquisition of Navman, which follows two other acquisitions in 2011, see earlier reports in M2M Now – the purchase of Motorola Solutions’ M2M business unit and the acquisition of the connectivity services provider Globalconect Ltd – is expected to complete on January 3, 2012.
Oozi Cats (pictured), Chief Executive of Telit, said, “the Navman acquisition provides Telit with access to new GPS customers and products beyond the traditional M2M industry. Navman’s reputation for delivering state-of-the-art GPS technology and the global reach of Telit’s sales and marketing organisation put us in a strong position to benefit from the growth in the GPS sector. In addition, the acquisition strengthens our position as the premier product and consultative partner in the M2M industry by leveraging the synergies of both companies to better serve our global customers.”
George Arnott, VP of Navman’s global OEM solutions, who will be managing the business unit under Telit’s ownership, said: “We are excited about the prospect of working with the Telit team to continue bringing our quality GPS module solutions to the market. With our pioneering GPS engineering background, we are also excited about the possibility of creating new hybrid GPS and wireless M2M innovations for Telit customers.”
According to the “World GPS Market Forecast to 2013” from RNCOS, shipments of GPS devices will grow at a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of more than 20% this year through 2013 to reach 900 million units sold generating more than $70 billion in annual revenue.