From correspondents in Delhi, India, 10:17 PM IST

MapmyIndia, India’s leader in premium quality digital maps and consumer navigation services today announced its partnership with Ford India to sell MapmyIndia Navigator, India’s premium GPS navigation device. The MapmyIndia Navigator is now included with the Navi Gear package of Ford Endeavour. MapmyIndia Navigator is also offered as a new accessory feature available at all authorized Ford dealerships across India, which can be fitted on all Ford vehicle range, including the Ford Fiesta, Ikon, Fusion and the Endeavour.

This partnership comes at the same time as release of MapmyIndia Navigator 2.0, which offers unprecedented and unparalleled street level map coverage in 174 cities, up from previous 18 cities. In comparison, others offer navigation on phones and devices with limited and basic maps ranging from 6 to 30 cities. With this new release and partnership, the award-winning MapmyIndia Navigator extends its dominance as India’s premium GPS navigation product and continues to introduce more Indian consumers to the benefits of GPS navigation.

“Ford India is committed to understand our consumer's changing needs and preferences. Through this new partnership with MapmyIndia, Ford customers will enjoy an enhanced in-car experience and the benefits of GPS navigation will make driving and traveling even safer, comfortable and fun,” said Nigel E. Wark, executive director, Marketing, Sales & Service, Ford India.

“We are happy that Ford India has chosen to partner with MapmyIndia for GPS navigation. Through this partnership, we hope more Indian consumers can enjoy the convenience and comfort of GPS navigation in their cars. We are committed to empowering our partners in the automotive industry with best-in-class navigation products for Indian consumers. The release of MapmyIndia Navigator 2.0, with street level maps for 174 cities, will help Ford and our other partners sell to the large Indian consumer base that lives beyond the major metros as well”, says Rakesh Verma, MD, MapmyIndia.

Find your way, from anywhere to everywhere
In a country where road signs are often non-existent, driving and traveling can become a frustrating experience. The portable MapmyIndia Navigator device uses satellites to show you where you are, and guides you turn-by-turn to your destination, making your drive safe, informed and comfortable. You can even find nearby points of interest like hospitals, ATMs, restaurants, petrol pumps, offices etc. Ford car owners can additionally see and navigate to the nearest Ford service centers and showrooms. MapmyIndia Navigator is powered by India’s largest navigation map database of MapmyIndia Maps. Entertainment features such as ability to play movies, music and photos are also built-in to the MapmyIndia Navigator, making it the ideal navigation and entertainment companion while driving and traveling. The innovative features and comprehensive map coverage of the MapmyIndia Navigator recently won it the Geospatial Product of the Year 2008.

MapmyIndia Navigator is the first and only GPS navigation product in India to be certified by car manufacturers, following launch of MapmyIndia Navigator as a General Motors Genuine Accessory in January 2008, and now the new partnership inked with Ford India. Leading car manufacturers are partnering with MapmyIndia for navigation because of its unparalleled map coverage, detail, accuracy and frequent updates. MapmyIndia’s current coverage and future roadmap will continue to enable its automotive partners to market best-in-class navigation products to Indian car owners all across India.

MapmyIndia Navigator 2.0 – safe and comfortable driving experience for Ford car owners
•Travel from anywhere to everywhere across India and get turn-by-turn voice and map guidance to your destination
•Navigate in 174 cities with complete details of streets, localities, sub-localities and points of interest
•Travel seamlessly to 1,30,000 towns and villages connected by national and state highways
•Find any place with 4,50,000 points of interest across 52 categories such as restaurants, ATMs, hotels etc.
•Additional high-quality multimedia features such as movies, music and photos for in-car entertainment
•Ford owners can additionally see and navigate to nearest Ford service centers and showrooms across India.
•Available at all authorized Ford dealerships across India

Availability
Consumers can purchase MapmyIndia Navigator by walking into over 500 outlets across India, including all authorized Ford India and General Motors car dealerships, car accessory outlets, and consumer electronics retail chains and outlets. It can also be purchased from MapmyIndia directly, either online (www.mapmyindia.com/navigator) or by calling MapmyIndia Customer Care (011-4600 9999, +91 9999 333 223/4).

Explore your city like never before – 174 cities at street level
•South: Karnataka (3 cities: Bangalore, Mangalore, Mysore), Tamil Nadu (5 cities: Chennai, Coimbatore, Pondicherry etc.), Andhra Pradesh (3 cities: Hyderabad, Secundarabad, Vishakapatnam etc.), Kerala (26 cities: Kochi, Thiruvananthapuram, Kozhikode etc.)
•West: Maharashtra (29 cities: Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Thane, Pune, Nagpur etc.), Gujarat (16 cities: Ahmadabad, Surat, Vadodara etc.), Goa (10 cities: Panaji, Vasco Da Gama, Calangute etc.), Madhya Pradesh (2 cities: Bhopal, Indore)
•North: Delhi NCR (6 cities: New Delhi, Gurgaon, Noida, Greater Noida, Faridabad, Ghaziabad), Punjab (31 cities: Amritsar, Jalandhar, Ludhiana etc.), Chandigarh Metro (3 cities: Chandigarh, Panchkula, Mohali), Haryana (2 cities: Ambala, Rohtak), Rajasthan (10 cities: Jaipur, Jodhpur, Jaisalmer, Mount Abu etc.), Uttar Pradesh (3 cities: Agra, Kanpur, Lucknow), Uttaranchal (18 cities: Dehradun, Mussoorie, Nainital etc.)
•East: West Bengal (3 cities: Kolkata, Bidhan Nagar, Haora), Bihar (1 city: Patna), Jharkhand (2 cities: Jamshedpur, Ranchi), Orissa (1 city: Bhubhaneshwar)
•Visit www.mapmyindia.com/navigator for full list

Source: Press Release Distribution via India PRwire