Forrester Research issued this week a new report - detailed in an Advertising Age article – that describes social location applications (like Foursquare, Loopt, MyTown, Brighkite, etc.) as a minor phenomenon still too small for major marketers today. In the study Forrester found that only 4% of U.S. online adults have...

The market for gyroscopes in mobile handsets is forecast to grow by 150% between 2010 and 2011 according to a new study from IMS Research. The firm forecasts that annual shipments of gyroscopes in mobile handsets will increase to over 200 million by 2014, capturing over one third of the smartphone market. “While the...

In a new report, market research firm iSuppli expects the inclusion of GPS technology in cell phones to explode, reaching 79.9 percent of cell phones shipped in the fourth quarter of 2011 (amounting to 318.3 million units), against 187.8 million units or 56.1 percent in the first quarter of 2009.

Strategic consulting firm Ptolemus, which focus is on the LBS and Telematics markets, just released an interesting market report entitled "European Location Study 2010". In this report the firm demonstrates that the location "parameter" (locating a device anywhere in a matter of seconds) should not be considered as granted....

Real-time traffic information is today one of the most important services expected by users of turn-by-turn navigation solutions. According to the latest market data from ABI Research, the global number of traffic information users is expected to grow from 57 million in 2010 to more than 370 million in 2015. According to...

Marker research firm comScore last week released a study on mobile map usage based on data from its MobiLens service. The study found that 14 percent of mobile users in the U.S. accessed maps on their devices in April 2010, as the mobile map audience reached 33.5 million users, up 44 percent from the previous year. The...

Market research firm iSuppli expects shipments of connected PNDs in Western Europe to rise to 4.6 million units in 2014, up from 388,000 in 2009. iSuppli believes that PND makers are likely to answer the challenge brought by smartphones in offering differentiated, connected devices. iSuppli indeed noticed that “TomTom,...

According to market research firm iSuppli, the number of smart-phone-based OEM and aftermarket on-board navigation systems is projected to rise to 81 million units in 2010, up from 8 million in 2009. By 2014, usage will increase to 297 million. According to iSuppli terminology, “OEM on-board smart phone navigation” means...

INTERVIEW: Google and Nokia created turmoil in the navigation industry with their offerings of free mobile navigation services. Andrew Hart, senior specialist on navigation at automotive consultancy SBD, believes the car industry now faces a period of uncertainty before a preferred in-car navigation solution emerges.

A new report from market research firm GfK shows that the Smartphone market continued to grow strongly in the first quarter 2010 in Western Europe. “As a matter of fact one out of five terminals sold already runs an open operating system and uses a touchscreen or keyboard as an input interface,” said GfK in a press release....

According to a new research report from Berg Insight, mobile location-based service revenues in Europe are forecasted to reach € 420 million in 2015, from € 220 million in 2009, a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 12 percent. Local search, navigation services and social networking are said to become the top...

According to a new forecast from market research firm IDC, worldwide media tablet shipments will grow from 7.6 million units in 2010 to more than 46 million units in 2014, representing a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 57.4%. In comparison, IDC expects 398 million portable PCs will be shipped in 2014. "These are...