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2022: Reduction of 10% of employees
In early July 2022, mapping service TomTom announced the layoff of 10% of employees worldwide and attributed its decision to the development of automation technologies and the increased use of digital technology in the mapping process. The company is busy revising its structure, which will also allow it to adapt to the current realities and market conditions.
The planned cuts will amount to about 500 employees of a Dutch company specializing in geolocation technologies, which has been badly affected by the coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) and is in recovery mode. Classic GPS navigators are gradually giving way to communicators, and TomTom, one of the leaders in the production of GPS devices, is forced to carry out downsizing in order to stay afloat.
The dominance of multifunctional smartphones forced TomTom to reduce the number of employees by 10%. The company's management believes that the dismissal of such a large number of employees will free up funds that can subsequently be spent on business development or at least maintain the current level of sales from 2022 to 2024.
In its 2021 annual report, company officials said the foundation of its products and services was a mapping platform using a combination of machine learning and mapping skills to integrate data from a variety of sources. The platform is using more automation, with client data entering the location database. Unfortunately, this will have an estimated impact on approximately 500 employees in our Maps division, representing about 10% of the total headcount.
{{quote "A higher level of automation and integration of different digital sources will lead to the creation of more recent and saturated maps with a wider coverage. These cards will improve our offerings and allow us to enter a wider market, both in the automotive and corporate businesses, "said TomTom CEO Harold Goddijn. }} According to the PwC report, intelligent automation will increase global GDP from AI by $15 trillion by 2030. Analysts said these additional revenues would also create demand for many jobs, but there are also concerns it could displace many existing jobs. According to the PwC report, 3% of jobs will be at risk in early 2020, and about 30% by mid-2030[1]
2019: Bridgestone telematics business sale for $1bn
On January 22, 2019, TomTom announced the sale of its telematics division to Japanese automotive tire manufacturer Bridgestone. The transaction value is $1 billion.
This is a business in which TomTom is developing software to control corporate fleets. Such software allows you to improve the management of the operation of trucks and cars, as well as reduce costs.
Plans to sell TomTom's telematics division were officially announced at the end of September 2018. Then analysts estimated assets at 700 million euros. Bridgestone valued them at about half of TomTom's market capitalization, which is about €1.89 billion by January 22, 2019, the news agency said. Reuters
Most of the money (about 750 million euros) received from the transaction, TomTom is going to return to shareholders through capital recovery measures and consolidation of securities. The rest of the funds will be invested in the company's main business - the sale of digital cards to automakers. In this market, TomTom is becoming more difficult to work due to strong competition.
In 2018, TomTom shares collapsed after Google it announced a partnership with automakers, and Renault. Nissan Mitsubishi The partners agreed to jointly develop next-generation infotainment systems based on. Android Services, and Google Maps Google Assistant Google Play will be combined with advanced Alliance Intelligent Cloud software and vehicle diagnostics.
According to the head of the European representative office of Bridgestone Paolo Ferrari, the company, having bought the telematics assets of TomTom, will be able to expand the main tire business, accelerate the development of the data business, as well as increase the customer base and further opportunities.[2]
The deal is scheduled to close in the second quarter of 2019. TomTom's telematics division employs 670 people (as of January 22).
2018: Creating a free SDK for developers
In early September 2018, TomTom provided developers with a free software library that allows the Dutch company's mapping data and technology to be used in mobile applications. The move reflects TomTom's chosen strategy to transform from a consumer device maker into a software company.
The presented SDK toolkit from TomTom allows you to create applications with company maps for iOS and Android operating systems. On the map created using the SDK, houses under construction, new roads and interchanges, recently opened organizations will appear - that is, all those changes that are made to TomTom maps are available.
The library does not provide the ability to build routes and use search, nor does it offer some other advanced features. But you can use cards and information about traffic jams without restrictions, notes the IT publication TechCrunch.
To take advantage of the full functionality of the TomTom mapping platform, you need to conclude a license agreement with the company. Prices depend on the number of requests received from the user device to TomTom servers. For example, 2,500 requests per day are free, and in addition, developers must pay $25 for every 50 thousand operations.
Thus, the free SDK can be considered a trial version of TomTom services. Some applications will also have enough free opportunities: for example, when you only need to display the situation with traffic congestion or a point on the map where the store, cafe, etc., is located.
According to Leandro Margulis, vice president of business development and product marketing at TomTom, the free SDK was open to keep developers at the center of everything the company does. He also stressed that developers can simultaneously use geolocation services from different vendors - TomTom rules allow this.[3]
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