TomTom expands to Argentina

~ TomTom introduces award-winning car navigation products in Argentina ~

Buenos Aires, TomTom, the world’s leading provider of navigation solutions and digital maps, with over 30 million users worldwide, today announces that it is expanding into Argentina. TomTom will enter the market with three products: the premium TomTom GO, the mid-range TomTom XL and entry-level TomTom ONE. The products will be distributed by Visuar and sold through various retailers across Argentina including Garbarino, Fravega, Carrefour, Wal-Mart and Falabela. The products will be available in stores in August 2009.

“Argentina offers a good potential with over 9 million cars on the road every day, and we are confident that we can achieve the same leading position in Argentina that we already have in the rest of the world,” says Elias Kabeche, TomTom’s Area Director Latin America. “Offering our fully localised PND products in Argentina is a logical next step in our expansion strategy in Latin America.”

Ease of use
All TomTom products are developed in-house and are plug & play, which means that they can be used straight out of the box without having to read any instruction manuals. They feature a touch screen with an intuitive navigation menu and icons in International Spanish. Clear voice instructions ensure drivers get to their destination without stress. A smartly designed EasyPort™ mount ensures easy stowing and carrying.

Maps, Map Share™, free map update
Tele Atlas, a world leading digital map provider and part of the TomTom Group, provides the maps of Argentina. In addition to a pre-installed Argentinean map, TomTom will reward the first Argentinean customers a full year of free map updates, offering every released map version for free in the first year

The world’s road infrastructure changes up to 15% each year and in fast developing countries even up to 40% per year. The quality of map data benefits from a growing customer base or community by using technologies from both Tele Atlas & TomTom. One of these unique technologies is TomTom Map Share. This free map improvement technology allows drivers to easily improve their maps directly on the device as soon as they spot changes in the roads, with just a few touches on the screen of their device. These can include changes in street names, road speed limits, turn restrictions, traffic directions and road blocks, as well as corrections to Points of Interest, such as phone number changes. In addition, Map Share users can also benefit from changes made by others, validated by TomTom and shared through the free desktop software TomTom HOME.

Safety as a priority
Research institutions including the leading US research institute Virginia Tech Transportation Institute and research institute TNO in the Netherlands have proven that satellite navigation has a positive influence on driving behaviour and traffic safety. In addition, driving with a navigation device increases driver’s alertness and reduces stress levels. Safety is a key priority in the development of all TomTom products. All TomTom devices come with comprehensive safety features, like a Help Me! Menu.

TomTom HOME
All TomTom users have access to TomTom HOME, TomTom’s free desktop software for PC/Mac, which will be fully available in International Spanish. Through TomTom HOME, customers can easily download new software versions, voices, free user generated content, or the latest maps to keep their device up to date. TomTom Map Share users can also receive map improvements made by others free of charge as soon as they log on to TomTom HOME, making their maps as dynamic as the world they live in.

Availability
TomTom products will be available in stores across Argentina in August 2009

Map coverage in Argentina:
This detailed map of Argentina, created by Tele Atlas, includes over 200,000 kilometers of road network and has detailed street level coverage of 70 cities including the provinces of Buenos Aires, Capital Federal, Chubut, Córdoba, Entre Ríos, Nenquén, Rio Negro and Santa Fe. The remainder of Argentina is covered via a network of motorway, provincial and major road network extending well into Uruguay which has further detailed street level coverage of Montevideo, Punto del Este and Maldonado.