About Rod D. Martin
Praise for Rod D. Martin
Book Rod to Speak
Politics & Economics
Technology & Markets
Faith & Culture
by Quinten Plummer
TechNewsWorld
May 8, 2015
Ride-sharing company Uber has submitted a bid of up to US$3 billion to acquire Nokia’s Here maps service, The New York Times reported Friday.
Several Here suitors have surfaced since April, when Nokia made known its intent to sell the service, including Facebook, Google, and a consortium of German automakers and Chinese search engine Baidu.
The biggest threat to Uber’s bid may be that consortium, composed of Audi, BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Baidu, according to the Times’ unnamed sources.
Baidu’s interest likely is related to an existing partnership with Here, which began powering Baidu Maps late last year. However, the automakers may be even more motivated to stake a claim in the mapping service.
Nokia purchased Here’s foundation, Navteq, in 2007, and the mapping system eventually evolved into Here. The service now powers about 80 percent of car navigation systems, making the software a compelling purchase for automakers.
The offer from the automaker consortium wasn’t specified, but it was said to be competitive with the bid Uber submitted.
Why Uber Wants It
Uber also has a lot to gain from acquiring Here.
Uber needs to break its reliance on Google, according to futurist Rod D. Martin, CEO of The Martin Organization.
“Uber is starting to develop self-driving cars to compete with Google,” he told the E-Commerce Times, “and just as Apple needed to replace Google Maps on the iPhone when Google introduced Android, Uber can’t afford to bet its future on Google’s continued goodwill.”
Uber and Google eventually will find themselves sparring over the data they derive from customers, suggested Andy Abramson, CEO of Comunicano.
Data is the new currency, he said.
Uber also has little control over Google Maps. There isn’t much the ride-sharing company can do when Google Maps erroneously sends drivers off course and to the wrong location, Abramson pointed out.
“Buying a real mapping and GPS company gives Uber intellectual property and human capital that’s intrinsic to their business,” he told the E-Commerce Times.
What Uber Risks
One of the reasons Uber may be seeking out Here — independence from Google — also could manifest as one of the risks of the acquisition.
“It exacerbates the growing rift with Google,” said Martin. “Everyone knows where that’s headed, but it isn’t there yet, and a premature break would hurt Uber a lot more than it could possibly hurt Google.”
A lesser risk, though valid, could be Uber’s ability to execute its implementation of Here, he added.
“Here might prove inferior to Google Maps — particularly once a new, otherly focused company owns it,” said Martin. “That was certainly the case with Apple Maps, and it hurt.”
Why Google Wants It
Although Google already runs the planet’s most successful mapping software, it could make a more compelling bid and gobble up Here.
“Google would be bolstering their team with engineering talent that knows mapping and GPS,” Comunicano’s Abramson pointed out.
Here’s Navteq foundation gave Nokia a GPS and mapping team that was the best in the business, he observed, and that’s something Google would want.
“The intellectual property that Navteq and Nokia had, or now has, is still very rich,” he remarked, “and that would give Google significant clout.”
— Uber Wants to Get Off Google’s Maps originally appeared at Tech News World.
Rod is one of our nation’s leading minds. He’s smart, original, and very committed—a combination that one rarely finds.
Rod Martin and [former Howard Dean campaign manager] Joe Trippi are America’s two foremost experts on online politics.
Rod Martin is a Reaganite-Thatcherite conservative…[and] a man who has spent much of his life ministering to and working for the benefit of others. I know Rod as an advocate for freedom, a leader who understands the real changes we need in Washington, and who has the drive and ability to make those changes happen.
Rod Martin is the kind of dynamic leader who has the knowledge, ability and experience to lead us successfully into the 21st Century. His vision for America is compelling.
Rod Martin literally wrote the book on excellence. Humble yet brilliant, a man of love and compassion, with penetrating clarity he illuminates the world around us, and we are both stirred and enlightened.
Rod Martin is a born leader and an outstanding political mind. Anyone who takes him on is going to have a serious fight on their hands.
Rod Martin is a man of uncommon vision and character. Ever since I first worked alongside Rod in the early days of PayPal, I’ve been struck by his powerful vision for the future. Rod understands the intersection of technology, politics and culture in a way that few others do.
Rod Martin wears with uncommon grace an uncanny ability to link his vigorous faith to the practical challenges of both the business world and the political arena. Yet the respect he shows for others carries a warmth and modesty that are both too rare among those who are strong advocates of feisty positions.
America badly needs more leaders who really get the future. We need more Rod Martins.
Rod Martin is a modern day philosopher-statesman. He is a capitalist intellectual, a conservative iconoclast, a gentle adversary and a kind prophet. He inspires us towards a fresh national vision built upon the original founding principles.
Rod Martin is not only effective and efficient, but he is also perceptive, wise and gracious. He gets things done. He is a great friend and a great ally.
Rod is one of the sharpest, most gracious men I know, and one of the most gifted political thinkers today. His ability to analyze issues and communicate thoughtful insights on them have earned him the respect of people across the political spectrum.
I am proud to have been Rod Martin’s friend for a quarter century, and I can tell you that he is one of the finest men and most outstanding leaders in our church and in our country today. He has a knack for turning everything he touches to success.
Rod Martin is a cornucopian entrepreneur and eutropic thinker whose influence radiates through an array of companies, institutions, movements and churches. A renaissance American, he is also a prolific friend of freedom and faith around the globe.
If Rod Martin represents the next generation of leaders, America has nothing to worry about.
A leader and a servant, in public life and in private, Rod Martin strides at the top of his profession, and has nowhere to go but up. He is in the truest sense of the word ‘outstanding’.
Rod Martin is undoubtedly one of the most accomplished thought leaders today. He is a wonderful mentor, a humble role model, and a deep inspiration for the next generation of scientific innovators and entrepreneurs.
Rod’s achievements pale beside his character and his brilliance. He sees what others can’t. He leads when others won’t.
Rod Martin is one of America’s finest young minds.
You must be logged in to post a comment.