New Service Showcased at CTIA Wireless 2005 Conference in New Orleans, March 14-16, Booth # 331
Nextel Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:NXTL) and MapQuest.com, Inc., today introduced — for the first time ever — the use of MapQuest’s digital maps and directions to provide location-based services exclusively on Nextel’s GPS-enabled phones. Available starting today, “MapQuest(R) Find Me” helps users pinpoint their locations on their phones, find nearby locations (e.g. restaurants, hotels, airports, hospitals), and get maps and directions. This new mobile offering blends some of the best technology in digital maps and directions exclusively with Nextel’s GPS-enabled digital wireless phones and is the first offering from a new partnership between the companies, which will allow Nextel customers to utilize the MapQuest(R) service to share location information with friends while on the go anywhere on Nextel’s nationwide network.
The “MapQuest Find Me” service includes a Web site component (findme.mapquest.com), in which subscribers can see their location history. Users can also opt-in to create a customized list of friends and family members who can access their GPS location. For example, today’s mobile social set can share their location with friends on the go.
“We are extremely pleased to be in a partnership with MapQuest, the pioneer in digital maps and directions, and to add ‘MapQuest Find Me’ to our suite of GPS offerings. Nextel is the leader in the industry for location-based solutions and sees this new partnership as keeping us at the forefront in that arena,” said Greg Santoro, vice president, Nextel Products and Services. “We anticipate that this partnership and service – which is exclusive to Nextel – will help raise awareness of the benefits of using GPS-enabled cellular phones in the marketplace, and help increase adoption and usage of these types of services.”
“‘MapQuest Find Me’ is the latest in a series of innovations that extends our popular service beyond the desktop,” said Tommy McGloin, senior vice president and general manager of MapQuest.com, Inc. “The MapQuest.com website is already the No. 1 online source for maps and directions – with more than 35 million monthly users.(1) With the addition of new mobile services like ‘MapQuest Find Me,’ and the successful ‘Send to Phone’ feature, which was introduced in January, we continue to capitalize on new market opportunities and expand the reach of our brand and our high-quality maps and directions,” added McGloin.
The “MapQuest Find Me” service is available on compatible handsets from Nextel. Pricing is $3.99 for subscribers with existing data service plans, or $5.99 as a stand-alone service, a charge that will be included on the customer’s monthly Nextel’s bill. Additional service charges from Nextel may apply.
For more information on how to subscribe to “MapQuest Find Me” go to http://www.mapquestservices.com/mobile or call (877) 898-3555.
“MapQuest Find Me” is also a part of the offerings provided and marketed through the AOL(R) Mobile brand and suite of services. More information on “MapQuest Find Me” can be found under “Other Services” at http://www.aolmobile.com.
About Nextel Communications
Nextel Communications, a FORTUNE 200 company based in Reston, Va., is a leading provider of fully integrated wireless communications services and has built the largest guaranteed all-digital wireless network in the country covering thousands of communities across the United States. Today 95 percent of FORTUNE 500 companies are Nextel customers. Nextel and Nextel Partners, Inc. currently serve 297 of the top 300 U.S. markets where approximately 261 million people live or work.
About MapQuest.com, Inc.
MapQuest helps people find places. Headquartered in Denver, Colorado and Mountville, Pennsylvania, MapQuest offers Web, Wireless, Business Solutions, and Published products worldwide. MapQuest.com, both the top mapping and directories site on the Web according to comScore Media Metrix, served over 35 million users in January 2005. MapQuest also empowers more than 1,400 businesses with software solutions to location-enable Web and wireless applications, and is a leading provider of custom mapping content for publishers and corporations, producing more than 1.5 billion pages of printed maps every year. MapQuest.com Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of America Online, Inc.
About America Online, Inc.
America Online, Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Time Warner Inc. Based in Dulles, Virginia, America Online is the world’s leader in interactive services, Web brands, Internet technologies and e-commerce services.
