LBS

Microsoft to acquire Nokia’s devices & services business

Microsoft and Nokia have decided to enter into a transaction whereby Microsoft will purchase substantially all of Nokia’s Devices & Services business, license Nokia’s patents, and license and use Nokia’s mapping services. Microsoft will pay EUR 3.79 billion to purchase substantially all of Nokia’s Devices & Services business, and EUR 1.65 billion to license Nokia’s patents, for a total transaction price of EUR 5.44 billion in cash. www.nokia.com

Joingo Places uses invenue marketing

By partnering with major wireless network technology providers, Joingo Places allows any brand to directly communicate with their customers, delivering mobile messages and offers that are based on the customers’ interests and location. Brand marketers will be able to create multiple indoor and outdoor geofences, send messages to customers within those defined areas, either immediately or when triggered by an entry or exit event. Indoor location capabilities can help customers search for and find specific locations or points of interest while in the venue. www.joingo.com

Loctronix’s ASR-2300 SDR module

Loctronix® Corporation has announced the availability of its new softwarede fined radio (SDR) module, the ASR-2300, for developing highperformance positioning, navigation and timing (PNT), and communication applications. It is a multipleinput and multiple-output (MIMO) transceiver module incorporating two wideband Field Programmable RF(FPRF) transceivers (300 MHz to 3.8 GHz) from Lime Microsystems,10- axis accelerometer/gyro/compass/ barometer sensors, and a large programmable FPGA capable of over 300 MiB/sec sustained communications with a host processor via USB 3.0 interface. www.loctronix.com

Congressman in US takes ride in a driverless car

Rep. Bill Shuster (R., Altoona) made a 33-mile trip from Cranberry Township to Pittsburgh International Airport in a computer-operated car. The socalled driverless Cadillac SRX was designed by Carnegie Mellon University researchers who have been working on the project since 2008. The car uses inputs from radars, laser range finders, and infrared cameras to maneuver in traffic. He said he can now imagine a future where such vehicles enter the mainstream, potentially reducing accidents, fatalities and congestion on roads. Raj Rajkumar, the leader of the project, said the biggest design challenge for driverless vehicles is managing unpredictable events. www.philly.com

Maps for self-driving cars

Nokia is teaming up with Mercedes-Benz with the goal of designing 3D maps for self-driving cars. The mapping feature will be provided by Nokia’s Here, a )_ cloud-based service that offers drivers real-time traffic updates, road closures, and recommendations based on their location. Gearing up now for Internetconnected cars, Here will ultimately take on the challenge of directing selfdriving cars. http://news.cnet.com

Realtime traffic info by MapmyIndia

MapmyIndia has launched realtime traffic updates on its free MapmyIndia app on Windows Phone, Windows 8 and Android platforms. It claims that the service will deliver accurate, comprehensive and realtime traffic information, and allow users to look at traffic situation in real time and plan routes accordingly. http://gadgets.ndtv.com