Nokia to close sale of digital mapping unit December 4

Nokia will receive 2.5 million euros net when the transaction is finalized in early 2016.

Audi AG, BMW Group, and Daimler AG now officially own Here, Nokia’s digital mapping and location business.

The three automaker partners – Daimler BMW and Volkswagen’s premium division Audi – will each hold an equal stake in Here and none of them seeks to acquire a majority interest, they said in a joint statement. Early in the process, Facebook was reportedly a potential buyer as the social media company signed a deal with Nokia to use Here maps in the mobile version of the app. Not only did Nokia prefer to focus on its core, networking business, but also, the revenue contribution of Here wasn’t really on par with what Nokia expected of it, all leading up to a decision to sell it.

The transaction which was originally announced by Nokia on August 3, 2015, valued HERE at an enterprise value of 2.8 billion euros, subject to certain purchase price adjustments. Nokia expects to earn a profit of about one billion euros.

The authorization for the Nokia board to finalize the takeover came at an extraordinary general meeting Tuesday following last month’s launch of a public exchange offer for all outstanding Alcatel shares. It was Nokia’s largest deal ever, prior to the planned Alcatel-Lucent merger.

Many of their vehicles are already integrated with the Here system, and owning the system will give these companies more flexibility in how they develop services in the future.