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CoPilot Live 7 mobile phone GPS navigation launches across Europe

Latest generation voice-guided GPS navigation software for mobile phones and PDAs combines dedicated system simplicity with real-time navigation-based mobile Internet services.

October 11th 2007, London United Kingdom. ALK Technologies today announced the European availability of CoPilot® Live™ 7 GPS navigation for Windows Mobile phones and PDAs from 22nd October 2007. CoPilot Live 7 redefines mobile satellite navigation with its simple and intuitive menus, new clearer 2D/3D map views, safety camera warnings and real time mobile Internet services.

Providing full-featured voice-guided satellite navigation onboard a mobile phone, CoPilot Live 7 offers the same performance and ease of use as a dedicated or in-dash system. Redesigned destination entry makes going to places simple, with step-by-step address entry, finger-touch buttons and predictive address matching. Frequently used features are quickly accessible such as changing the view, finding a detour or locating the nearest petrol station or car park.

The new 2D and 3D map views on CoPilot Live 7 enable drivers, cyclists or pedestrians to see their exact location and the way ahead clearly and easily using their mobile phones. As with all CoPilot navigation solutions, Driver Safety is the priority so by default a map is only shown close to a turn or junction, progressively zooming-in before returning to the non-distracting safety screen. Comprehensive voice directions are spoken at each turn, further removing the need to glance at the screen.

CoPilot Live 7 incorporates the latest street mapping and points of interest from NAVTEQ with streets of Western Europe accurate down to house number and 7 digit UK post code. Additional map regions are available to purchase and download from the supplied CoPilot Central desktop companion, including Eastern Europe, South Africa, Australia, Middle East and North America.

Finding the nearest petrol station or car park is made easy with thousands of preloaded points of interest (POIs). There are over 50 categories, searchable by brand and displayed in CoPilot Live 7 both in 2D or 3D map views. Many POIs include telephone numbers, so customers can select a POI and call it directly from CoPilot.

Customers can now enjoy a truly personal navigation experience. CoPilot Live 7 provides a wide variety of routing options, familiar industry standard map colour schemes and other settings that can be selected to suit individual preferences. Commercial partners are able to create unique customer experiences to compliment their brands. Live mobile data services can be specified by Mobile Operators to incorporate their preferred partners or content.

An all-new desktop management companion ‘CoPilot Central’ makes it easy to download and manage extra maps, POIs and other content. Software updates are automatically downloaded and installed, while updated safety camera databases can be installed in moments. Powerful trip planning helps customers to work out journeys in advance and download them for navigation.

CoPilot Live 7 is a connected navigation system that utilises the mobile internet to deliver useful real-time information about the route. These ‘Navigation Based Services’ (NBS) include Live traffic information and CoPilot’s unique Internet location tracking. Customers in continental Europe can receive traffic information via the RDS TMC network. Businesses can take advantage of a seamless connection to CoPilot FleetCenter™, a premium service that provides multi-vehicle fleet tracking, job dispatch, instant driver messaging and historical reporting.

Michael Kornhauser, Vice President, Managing Director of ALK Technologies said “CoPilot Live 7 is a truly personalised satellite navigation system. We can now provide drivers, cyclists and pedestrians with the same experience on a phone as a dedicated or in-dash sat nav system, as well as useful real-time location-specific services such as traffic or location tracking. Now mobile phones are just as useful for helping you find the way as they are for making calls.”

David Hooper, EMEA Mobility Business Group Marketing Manager of Microsoft said “It‘s excellent news that CoPilot Live 7 is ready to use on Windows Mobile 6 devices. Customers can now enjoy dedicated navigation performance and a rich communication experience on a single Windows Mobile device. CoPilot Live and Windows Mobile has enjoyed tremendous retail success through UK Mobile Operators and we expect this to continue thanks to the rich functionality available in CoPilot Live 7 and Windows Mobile 6.”

CoPilot Live 7 mobile navigation is available across Europe from 22nd October for Windows Mobile based smartphones and Pocket PCs, including the new MDA Vario III from T-Mobile and the XDA Orbit from O2. More information is available at www.alk.eu.com