Jun 11
Jun 10
Jun 09
Google reportedly closing in on $1.3 billion deal for Waze traffic app (updated)
Posted in: Today's Chili
Last month news leaked that Facebook might acquire crowdsourced navigation / traffic / mapping app Waze, but now two papers in Israel say Google is about to close the deal. Globes and Calcalist both peg the potential sale price at $1.3 billion US, with the company’s development team remaining in Israel after the sale and not moving to the US. Where they will work from is cited by Globes as one reason why negotiations may not have worked out with Facebook, along with the price tag. For those unfamiliar with Waze, the app generates mapping data in real-time based on its nearly 50 million users and reports of accidents or traffic jams.
Update: Not to be left out, the Wall Street Journal also claims that Google is near buying Waze. The newspaper hears that the Waze app could soldier on while Google beefs up its own mapping app with data from its reported target. Likewise, Google Maps information could slip into Waze.
May 30
It’s not hard to navigate to a Facebook Event if there’s an address: it’s much harder if the organizer simply assumes that we’ll know where to go. Thankfully, we can now lean on some collective help through Waze 3.7 for Android and iOS. The update not only populates the destination list with Facebook Events, but fills in the blanks for everyone involved — enter an address and it will be sent to others on the guest list. It’s also easier to be fashionably late with the new app, as Waze members can see when others are likely to show up. Anyone who’s ever had to navigate to “that place near the guy with the thing” will likely want to grab the 3.7 upgrade at one of the source links.
Filed under: Cellphones, GPS, Mobile, Facebook
Source: App Store, Google Play
May 24
May 21
Waze Arrives At Windows Phone Store
Posted in: Today's Chili
May 09
It looks like Facebook could be dropping another $1 billion in a new acquisition, at least that’s what the rumors are claiming as there have been reports that Facebook and Waze are reportedly in advanced talks over a possible acquisition valued between $800 million to $1 billion. This report comes from business daily Calcalist who revealed that the talk actually begun 6 months ago and that due diligence is currently underway after a term sheet was signed. (more…)
By Ubergizmo. Related articles: YouTube Could Be Launching Subscription Service Soon [Rumor], Spotify Rumored To Be Interested In Video Streaming And Original Content As Well, 
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May 09
Between buying Instagram and calling Facebook Home the “next version” of his social network, it’s fairly clear Mark Zuckerberg’s obsessed with the prime real estate on your smartphone. Israeli newspaper Calcalist is reporting that Zuckerberg and Co. are eyeing up crowdsourced GPS app Waze, which generates mapping data by pulling it from its users’ devices in real time. The paper says that Facebook entered into discussions around six months ago, with prices in the $800 million to $1 billion range being mentioned — and while that sounds like a big number, it’s still only a dollar per user.
Filed under: GPS, Internet, Software, Mobile, Facebook
Via: Reuters
Source: Calcalist (Translated)
Apr 15
The Daily Roundup for 04.15.2013
Posted in: Today's Chili 
You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours — all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
Apr 15
Noam Bardin, CEO of Waze, just took the stage here at D:Dive Into Mobile, taking part in a wide-ranging discussion hosted by Liz Gannes. Aside from dodging questions about potential acquisitions, Bardin made no bones about how he saw the future of mobile playing out. Of course, this is a man who spends essentially no time focused on the desktop web — given that Waze is mobile only, one shouldn’t be surprised. According to Bardin, “the next five years will be about fighting for time with users,” and he pointed to Facebook Home as the de facto example of that.
Rather than crafting their own OS and “doing what Microsoft has done — fighting a war that ended five years ago” — Facebook decided to make a time play on a massive OS. From there, Bardin confessed that in major markets, he sees Waze as Google’s “only real competition.”
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile
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