TomTom To Offer App Store

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Wall Street and industry insiders seem to think that personal nav units like Garmin and TomTom are at risk of being replaced by smartphones and their built in GPS. We’ve seen Garmin partner with ASUS to produce the Nuvifone and Garminfone (both of questionable quality). TomTom’s attempt to stay on the cutting edge? An app store for their GPS units. Yikes.

Although you’ve been able to play media back on your personal nav units for a few years now, they’ve never had a fully fledged app store, like what TomTom is suggesting. TomTom’s CEO Harold Goddijn gave an interview with pocket-lint, where he talked about how starting with the just released TomTom Go 1000 Live, and all devices hereafter, will have App Store functionality.

TomTom’s latest device, the Go 1000 Live, is based on a WebKit UI. The new WebKit backbone makes it easier for developers for develop for the new ‘TomTom’ platform. We’ve been critical of Garmin’s phone attempts here, and likewise, I think TomTom should stick to just GPS units. In a world where the vast amount of phone users just use whatever Nokia/Motorola featurephone comes for free with their new cell plan, I don’t think these two have anything to worry about from smartphones yet.

CEO Goddjin spoke as to why TomTom needs an app store:

It is less critical for us than say a phone maker, because the variety of information you want to have when you’re on the move is greater than when you are driving. When you are driving you are driving. Very few people sit in a car and say what do I want to do now. It is important nevertheless. It is important to get the depth and breadth of more applications, more content, more flexibility for both our consumer business and our automotive business.

TomTom mentioned how apps like Wikipedia, or tourist guide apps like Time Out or Yelp could be useful on a GPS unit. TomTom is currently getting the infrastructure in place for an app store. No timelines have been publicly announced.