History
The Group was founded in 1991 by four people, including three current members of senior management, Peter-Frans Pauwels, Pieter Geelen and Harold Goddijn. From our inception, we focused on developing software products for mobile devices, which are technically challenging because of low memory capacity and the inherent limitations on device size, processing power and data storage capacity.
From 1991 to 1996, we focused on developing a number of business-to-business applications for mobile devices, including bar-code reading, meter reading and order-entry systems, before shifting our focus to developing consumer software products for PDAs. By 1998, we had established ourselves as a market leader in PDA software, creating a number of consumer applications for PDAs, such as our EnRoute (later renamed RoutePlanner) and Citymaps navigation applications.
In 2001, Harold Goddijn was appointed CEO and we focused our business on car navigation. Our first navigation product for PDAs, the TomTom Navigator, was launched in June 2002. This product was sold as an add-on application for third-party PDAs and included a GPS receiver and car-cradle. We promoted and distributed this product across Europe, which allowed consumers to buy a fully functioning navigation system at a much lower price than previously available factory-installed and dealer-fitted systems. Sales of the Navigator software reached €8 million for the financial year ended 31 December 2002.
By the end of 2002, we had concluded that a market opportunity existed for an affordable, easy to use car navigation system that integrated all the components of a navigation system in one portable device. By the time the TomTom Navigator 2 was launched in early 2003, the potential for portable navigation devices was clear to us, and we recruited an experienced hardware team to develop an all-in-one navigation product.
In 2003, we made a strategic decision to adapt our core software architecture to operate both on our new hardware products and also across a wide variety of third-party hardware platforms and operating systems. The result of this initiative, the NavCore software platform, still forms the basis for our products and is continuously updated. The first NavCore-based product, the TomTom Navigator for Palm, was launched in January 2004. The TomTom GO, our first stand-alone PND, was introduced in March 2004. As demand grew, second generation devices and new products have been developed, as well as further versions of software navigation for mobile devices.
In May 2005, the Ordinary Shares were admitted to listing on Euronext Amsterdam following a successful initial public offering.
Key Acquisitions
Since May 2005, we have acquired the following key businesses:
Updated by TomTom IR July 2009
From 1991 to 1996, we focused on developing a number of business-to-business applications for mobile devices, including bar-code reading, meter reading and order-entry systems, before shifting our focus to developing consumer software products for PDAs. By 1998, we had established ourselves as a market leader in PDA software, creating a number of consumer applications for PDAs, such as our EnRoute (later renamed RoutePlanner) and Citymaps navigation applications.
In 2001, Harold Goddijn was appointed CEO and we focused our business on car navigation. Our first navigation product for PDAs, the TomTom Navigator, was launched in June 2002. This product was sold as an add-on application for third-party PDAs and included a GPS receiver and car-cradle. We promoted and distributed this product across Europe, which allowed consumers to buy a fully functioning navigation system at a much lower price than previously available factory-installed and dealer-fitted systems. Sales of the Navigator software reached €8 million for the financial year ended 31 December 2002.
By the end of 2002, we had concluded that a market opportunity existed for an affordable, easy to use car navigation system that integrated all the components of a navigation system in one portable device. By the time the TomTom Navigator 2 was launched in early 2003, the potential for portable navigation devices was clear to us, and we recruited an experienced hardware team to develop an all-in-one navigation product.
In 2003, we made a strategic decision to adapt our core software architecture to operate both on our new hardware products and also across a wide variety of third-party hardware platforms and operating systems. The result of this initiative, the NavCore software platform, still forms the basis for our products and is continuously updated. The first NavCore-based product, the TomTom Navigator for Palm, was launched in January 2004. The TomTom GO, our first stand-alone PND, was introduced in March 2004. As demand grew, second generation devices and new products have been developed, as well as further versions of software navigation for mobile devices.
In May 2005, the Ordinary Shares were admitted to listing on Euronext Amsterdam following a successful initial public offering.
Key Acquisitions
Since May 2005, we have acquired the following key businesses:
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August 2005—Datafactory AG based in Leipzig, Germany (which was the foundation for our WORK business unit) to accelerate the Group’s focus on telematics services to commercial fleet management solutions for €14.3 million.
January 2006—Applied Generics Limited, a company specialising in the use of data from mobile networks for advance routing of vehicles for €16.5 million. The technology and team acquired remain a vital part of the Group’s dynamic content offering.
June 2007—A 90-strong automotive engineering team from Siemens VDO’s research and development division, to build up TomTom’s AUTO business unit.
July 2007—An all-cash offer for Tele Atlas, one of the two largest global digital mapping companies. After EU Competition Commission approval, we completed the acquisition of Tele Atlas in June 2008 for €2.8 billion.
Updated by TomTom IR July 2009