IT Mergers & Acquisitions

NAVTEQ, a leading global provider of digital maps for vehicle navigation and location-based solutions, announced it has agreed to acquire Traffic.com, provider of personalized traffic information in the United States for an equity value of approximately $179 million.  The acquisition of Traffic.com will provide NAVTEQ with proprietary traffic content, as well as the technology and expertise to deliver that content to a wide variety of customers across multiple industries.  The Board of Directors of each company has approved the agreement.

Today, Traffic.com offers real-time customized traffic reports in 50 metropolitan areas and is a critical data component of NAVTEQ Traffic. Traffic.com had fiscal 2005 revenue of $43.3 million.  The Company currently has approximately 650 employees in 22 locations.  Traffic.com’s growing list of customers includes AOL, Microsoft, The Weather Channel, Comcast, Garmin and XM Satellite Radio.

“Our focus is on enhancing our map with content that brings the map to life and increases the utility and convenience of navigation devices. We have long believed in the value of traffic data and this acquisition is a natural and logical progression for NAVTEQ,” said Judson Green, President and CEO of NAVTEQ.  “Traffic.com brings a stream of high-quality, proprietary traffic content and a unique technology platform for the delivery of this and potentially other content.   Combined, the two companies have the potential to create and deliver advanced dynamic content that will fuel the next generation of location-enabled applications.”

NAVTEQ intends to finance the purchase price through a combination of approximately $47 million in cash and the issuance of approximately 4.1 million shares of NAVTEQ stock.  Based on current expectations and projections, management expects dilution to earnings per share from the acquisition of Traffic.com of $0.11 to $0.17 in 2007 and accretion to earnings per share by 2009.  NAVTEQ anticipates the closing will occur in the first quarter of 2007.  The acquisition is subject to customary closing conditions.  Merrill Lynch acted as financial advisor to NAVTEQ on the transaction.