United Maps „fills the gaps in road networks“ adding building footprints, pedestrians paths, mass transit information and relevant topical layers.
United Maps GmbH has announced today strategic investments from three organizations: High-Tech Grunderfonds, Bayern Kapital, and SpaceTec Capital Partners. United Maps did not disclose the magnitude of the investments, but said the new funding will support United Map’s effort to produce a new generation of fully routable, highly detailled and multimodal vector maps. -- >>
deutsche Version<<
United Maps strategy is to take basemaps - from vehicle navigation market leaders like
Navteq,
Tele Atlas or
AND – and algorithmically match them with value-added cartographic data and relevant information layers thereby conflated into new data products.
Digital cartography and webmapping by
Google Earth,
Yahoo! Maps or
Windows Live Search Maps are fast-growing segments of online usage worldwide. “With the support and funding of our investors, we deploy a disruptive technology and deliver unique map products timed to ride the wave of geodata, geolocation and GPS-based solutions," said Stefan Knecht, CIO and one of the three founders of
United Maps. “Our aggregation of diverse datasets is highly automated and delivers more than 90 percent correct matches. Processes and workflows are optimized for international markets and products.“
United Maps’ technological approach has a high potential: "United Maps demonstrates a unique innovation in a fast-growing market for location-based services and media. As a B2B-provider, United Maps extends details and relevancy of mapping services and offers a real value added.", says
Holger Heinen, Senior Investmentmanager at
High-Tech Gründerfonds.
Target markets for United Maps’ better maps are mobile devices and Smartphones, location-aware Media and Services (LBS) in online portals and business process optimization. United Maps’ white-labeled and on-demand services primarily cater for vertical B2B-markets and professional customers.
As Rainer Horn, Managing Director of
SpaceTec Capital puts it: „(...) United Maps delivers the reference frame for precise positioning systems and critical building blocks for the future geoweb.“
Andreas Wiedmann, co-founder and CEO: "I am really looking forward to an already fertile cooperation with our investors High-Tech Gründerfonds, Bayern Kapital – and we appreciate being the first investment of
SpaceTec Capital."
With more than 10 experienced cartographers, editors and GIS experts, United Maps produces better maps starting in November 2008. Germany is scheduled in 1Q09, Austria, Switzerland and additional 200 European cities will follow in 2Q09.
Profile United Maps GmbH
United Maps is focussed on vector cartography and geoinformation and was founded in 2008 by
Andreas Wiedmann (CEO),
Stefan Knecht (CIO) and
Carsten Recknagel (COO). With proprietary algorithms, experienced cartographers and efficient workflows, basemaps by leading industry providers are enhanced and added into a new generation of maps for mobile devices, webservices and process optimization (BPO). With unique detail, topical layers and exhaustive editorial input and maintainance, United Maps’ products „fill the gap within road networks“ with relevant content and leverage innovative applications and services in the geospace.
Press contact United Maps GmbH
United Maps GmbH
Stefan KnechtAgnes-Pockels-Bogen 1
80992 München
Tel.: +49 89 4521 393 11
press@unitedmaps.nethttp://unitedmaps.net About High-Tech Gründerfonds
High-Tech Gründerfonds invests venture capital in young, high-opportunity technological companies implementing promising research results in an entrepreneurial manner. The Federal German government, the
KfW banking group and the industrial enterprises
BASF,
Deutsche Telekom,
Siemens,
Robert Bosch,
Daimler and
Carl Zeiss have joined together under the "Partners for Innovation" initiative and started High-Tech Gründerfonds with 272 million EUR.
High-Tech Gründerfonds grants seed funding up to a prototype or "proof of concepts" or until market ready products.
About Bayern Kapital
Bayern Kapital GmbH is a Bavarian venture capital company and was founded as part of the "Bavarian Future Initiative" as a wholly-owned subsidiary of the
LfA Foerderbank Bayern (Bavaria's development bank) at the end of 1995.
The objective of Bayern Kapital is to finance research and development and market introduction of new products. In this effort Bayern Kapital usually acts as co-investor in cooperation with a lead investor.
About SpaceTec Capital Partners
SpaceTec Capital Partners GmbH, Munich is a consulting and investment company in the market of geo- and satellite information. SpaceTec is focussed on engagements on applications and services with high development potential.
Contact
High-Tech Gründerfonds Management GmbHHolger Heinen
Senior Investmentmanager
Ludwig-Erhard-Allee 2
53175 Bonn
Germany
Tel.: +49 228 965685 00
Fax: +49 228 965685 50
info@high-tech-gruenderfonds.dehttp://www.high-tech-gruenderfonds.de Bayern Kapital GmbHRosi Keimerl
Senior-Beteiligungsmanagerin
Ländgasse 135 a
84028 Landshut
Germany
Tel.: +49 871 92325 0
Fax: +49 871 92325 55
info@bayernkapital.dehttp://www.bayernkapital.de SpaceTec Capital Partners GmbHRainer Horn
Managing Partner
Perchtinger Str. 5
81379 München
Germany
Tel.: +49 89 7249556 0
Fax: +49 89 7249556 9
horn@spaceteccapital.dehttp://www.spaceteccapital.de 
