Acacia Research Makes Bid For Comtech Telecommunications
Comtech Acknowledges "Unsolicited" Proposal
JAVAD offers Triumph-LS Plus and Triumph 3 Latest-Generation Receiver. JAVAD GNSS is looking for new talent to join their team!
Acacia Research Corp. [ACTG] has made an offer to acquire location services provider Comtech Telecommunications Corp. for an estimated $790 million, according to published reports.
The Reuters news article, said that “Comtech faces pressure from one of its shareholders, Outerbridge Capital Management LLC,” to sell the company.
Comtech confirmed receipt of the proposal and referred Location Business News to a press release that said its Board of Directors are “evaluating the proposal in consultation with independent advisors” and that the company would “determine the course of action that it believes is in the best interests of the Company and its stockholders.”
The company said that Goldman Sachs is serving as its financial advisor and Proskauer Rose and Sidley Austin are serving as legal advisors.
Outerbridge, referring to the Reuters article in its own press release, said that “Comtech owes it to its shareholders to fully and fairly consider any proposals it receives to acquire the Company.”
Location Business News reported that Outerbridge said the location company has been undervalued in public markets because of “poor corporate governance, a history of capital misallocation, and a lack of executive succession planning.”
In a June 14 letter to Comtech’s board of directors, Outerbridge’s Rory Wallace, chief investment officer, said while the company continues to be a market leader, it could capitalize on such existing markets as 911 call routing infrastructure (NG911), among other areas. “Outerbridge believes that the served addressable market for Comtech from the NG911 opportunity alone could reach into the billions of dollars,” Wallace said in the letter.
SoftBank and u-blox to Develop GNSS Augmentation Systems
Three companies have announced plans to develop GNSS augmentation systems for Japan, the United States and Europe. SoftBank, ALES and Thalwil, Switzerland-based u‑blox [UBXN] have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to cooperate on GNSS augmentation services for global markets.
Japan’s ichimill GNSS augmentation service is provided by SoftBank, while its subsidiary ALES runs a business that generates and delivers positioning correction data, the company said. For its part, u‑blox provides electronic components for wireless communications and the PointPerfect GNSS augmentation service in Europe, the United States and other countries.
In addition, the companies will construct GNSS augmentation infrastructure for Japan, Europe and in the U.S., while also developing compatible GNSS receivers and devices to expand service areas. SoftBank, which has operated ichimill since November 2019, has developed its own GNSS receivers and is offering them in Japan. Centimeter-level positioning service has been offered by ALES to customers in Japan since 2020.
Overall, the companies say they will consider, in 2022, developing a global correction data delivery infrastructure that delivers unified correction signal formats. Through this infrastructure, companies using ichimill or PointPerfect will be able to conduct GNSS augmentation if they are in range of both services, the companies said. The companies say this arrangement will eliminate the need for separate service contracts by country or region.
Contact: Natacha Seitz, u-blox, 41 76 436 0788, natacha.seitz@u-blox.com, www.u-blox.com.
NextNav and Spartacus Acquisition Announce Closing of Business Combination
NextNav and special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) Spartacus Acquisition Corp. [TMTS] have completed their previously announced “business combination.” The combined company will operate as NextNav Inc., with its stock now trading on Nasdaq under the ticker symbols, NN and NNAVW, respectively.
NextNav says as much as $408 million from the merger will be used to build the next generation GPS platform, expand products that are deployed to 4,400 cities and expand a land-based radio positioning and timing network.
"We will continue to actively market Pinnacle to further its adoption across different verticals, and on TerraPoiNT, we will continue to focus on optimizing the technology to support commercial deployment," said Gillian Smith, NextNav vice president of marketing.
While NextNav sees public safety, emergency 911, gaming, app and data analytics market segments as strong areas, the company says infrastructure may be the way of the future.
"A few decades ago, when GPS was available in mobile phones for 911 geolocation purposes, we never could have imagined how it would be used today - for driving directions, an Uber pickup, gaming, or a food delivery service,” Smith said. “With the launch of our Pinnacle vertical location service this past year, we see our technology being used both now and in the future across a variety of industries - including public safety and E911, but also gaming, lone worker safety, app development and enhancing consumer experiences. Longer term, we see our TerraPoiNT service serving as a resilient layer for critical infrastructure."
Co-founder Ganesh Pattabiraman will continue to serve as CEO and president of NextNav. Former Sirius XM Radio chairman Gary Parsons will still be the company’s board chairman.
Contact: Mahmood Abu-Rubieh, for NextNav, NextNav@launchsquad.com, (248) 425-1465.
Other Location News:
News tip? Send them to kdennehy@driverlessreport.com. Go to www.locationbusinessnews.comfor more news and an archive of stories.
😮 This Device Could Usher in GPS-Free Navigation. “Sandia developed the chamber as a core technology for future navigation systems that don't rely on GPS satellites.”
🚗 AWS Accelerates Automotive Agenda. “AWS’ worldwide technical leader for automotive explained it wants to use Wavelength infrastructure installed at operator service aggregation points in self-driving scenarios, arguing the approach would simplify the transmission of location data and speed feedback.”
👌 Trimble and Microsoft Partner to Drive Digital Transformation Across Industries. “This partnership expands Trimble [TRMB] and Microsoft's [MSFT] existing relationship to combine the Microsoft cloud with Trimble's construction solutions and industry domain knowledge.”
✔ Orolia Signs an Agreement to Acquire Seven Solutions. “The merger with the tech company based in Granada, Spain will enhance Orolia’s portfolio…and will enable the next generation applications dependent on ultra-precise, resilient timing and frequency technology.”
😦 What To Do When China And Russia Jam GPS? Use The Earth’s Magnetic Field. “That’s why the U.S. Navy is looking at using the Earth’s magnetic field for navigation. The project – called Positioning Using Magnetic Anomalies Correlation of Earth (PUMACE) – aims to use anomalies in the Earth’s magnetic field to determine location.”
✔ Garmin Buys Former Great Mall of the Great Plains Site in Olathe. “Garmin [GRMN] said it will now take over the 193 acres at the northwest corner of 151st Street and Highway 169 in Olathe.”
🛰 Thales And CS GROUP Partner To Offer Cybersecure, Jam-Resistant Navigation System. “The Thales TopAxyz inertial unit uses accurate, reliable navigation information that is independent of sea state and vessel location, combined with a function that detects attempts to spoof GPS signals.”
🤞 Ericsson Revs Safety Trials for 5G Self-Driving Bus Project. “Telia’s network provides the 5G connectivity while Ericsson brings technical solutions designed for the 5G-connected control tower.”
😒 FBI Raids Chinese Point-of-Sale Giant PAX Technology. “PAX has issued a Q&A to customers which maintains that concerns over the alleged unexplained traffic from PAX terminals are related to the optional geolocation feature available on PAX terminals, and the use of dynamic IP addresses, commonly used for geolocation.”
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Location Industry Briefs
Send your news to kdennehy@driverlessreport.com. Go to www.locationbusinessnews.comfor more news and an archive of stories.
Navenio Partners With HERE For Indoor Wayfinding
Navenio has partnered with HERE Technologies to optimise efficiency, capacity and safety within indoor settings. The partnership with HERE focuses on providing indoor wayfinding to such industries as healthcare, retail and public transport.
The company’s indoor-location solution will be combined with HERE’s location platform to include services such as indoor mapping and routing. The partnership with HERE will help to scale location solutions for hospitals and hotels, the company said.
Contact: Navenio, info@navenio.com, 44(0)1865 601934, www.navenio.com.
CalAmp and FAIRWAYiQ Partner For Golf Industry Location Tech
CalAmp [CAMP] said it is providing its CalAmp Telematics Cloud (CTC) and edge computing devices to enhance FAIRWAYiQ's golf course operations and golf cart fleet management platform. Looking to improve and expand beyond the capabilities of its self-manufactured GPS sensors, FAIRWAYiQ plans to use CalAmp for its fleet and asset management solutions, the company said. Some of the partnership’s products include: GPS-enabled tracking devices for golf cart location monitoring, Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) key fobs for player and employee identification and geofencing and edge computing for improved course management.
Contact: CalAmp, www.calampcom.
Navigation 2021 To Be Held Nov. 15-18
The Royal Institute of Navigation’s Navigation 2021 will be Nov. 15-18 as hybrid event online and at the EICC in Edinburgh, Scotland.
Navigation 2021 will unite two established conferences: The International Navigation Conference (INC) and the European Navigation Conference (ENC). New topics will include animal navigation, cognition and human factors.
Contact: The Royal Institute of Navigation, 44(0)203 154 2122, admin@rin.org.uk.
Garmin Introduces Marine Navigation Handhelds
Garmin International [GRMN] has announced the GPSMAP 79 marine handheld series for mariners. GPSMAP 79 series features a modern display and optional built-in BlueChart g3 cartography to enhance navigation for boaters.
The GPSMAP 79 series is available in two models: the GPSMAP 79s with a built-in worldwide basemap and support for downloadable marine charts, and the GPSMAP 79sc, which comes standard with built-in BlueChart g3 cartography. The GPSMAP 79s and GPSMAP 79sc marine handhelds are available now at a retail price of $299.99 and $349.99, respectively.
Contact: Ricky Swickard, Garmin, media.relations@garmin.com, www.garmin.com.
3Dtracking Introduces New Mobile App
3Dtracking has launched 3Dtrack, a new mobile app that turns any smart mobile device into a GPS tracker. 3Dtrack allows 3Dtracking’s telematics service provider partners to demonstrate their vehicle tracking services and quickly run trials with potential customers without installing hardware, the company said.
Once the 3Dtrack app is installed on a mobile device, and after an initial registration, the exact location of the mobile device is transmitted over a data connection to the 3Dtracking platform, the company said. The 3Dtrack app also includes a panic button that is directly integrated with the 3Dtracking platform.
Contact: Tony Miller, 3Dtracking, (617) 418-3024, tony@3dtracking.com, www.3dtracking.com.
Spireon Rolls Out FL Flex Products
Spireon has introducing the next generation of the FL Flex suite of products and IntelliScan cargo sensor under its FleetLocate product line at the American Trucking Association's (ATA) Management Conference & Exhibition (MCE). The updated line of Flex devices are wireless sensor-capable and have an integrated cargo sensor. The device works on all types of trailers and has options that can be installed in as little as 10 minutes on empty or loaded trailers, the company said.
Contact: Spireon, www.spireon.com.
Spytec GPS Integrated With Google Maps
Spytec GPS has launched Time Machine that allows small businesses to get an historical record of GPS data for their vehicles and mobile assets. This release comes after the company announced its integration with Google Maps, the company said. With the Google Maps integration, Spytec GPS users now see: 3D details for building shapes and landmarks, address labels displayed on top of 3D buildings and more up-to-date traffic information and satellite views, the company said.
Contact: Brooke Andrus, Spytec GPS, 322220@email4pr.com.
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