Nokia announced HERE, a location cloud for maps and locations delivery across multiple platforms and operating systems. A week later, HERE was made available on iOS for the iPad and iPhone, looks like they are keen on being big on maps, and probably license maps across the board. HERE is based on HTML5, making it easy to present voice-guided walk navigation, offline maps and public transport directions irrespective of mobile OS.
Nokia HERE will also be available on Firefox OS which has as yet not seen a device go out to the market, but developer devices have been out for a while. Firefox devices are primed for early next year. With Mozilla, the leader in HTML5 on board, Nokia stands to have such a good footing to deliver rich possibilities for mobile applications.
While at it, Nokia announced acquisition of reality capture and processing technologies company Earthmine to integrate these capabilities in the new product HERE. Earthmine will become integral in the 3D capabilities of HERE. Nokia invested in this Berkeley based company saying maps are hard to get, but location is revolutionizing how technology is used to engage with the real world. Nokia has since finalized the acquisition of Earthmine inc and termed the details confidential.
