Garmin Signs Deal With Mobile Social Network

GPS specialist Garmin has signed a deal with GyPSii, which runs a mobile social network that Garmin plans to use in some of its products.

By signing the deal Garmin is joining a growing number of companies that are showing an interest in mobile social networking. On Monday Nokia bought Plazes, and recently Vodafone acquired ZYB.

"It is almost like a race -- everyone is trying to find a dance partner," said Thilo Koslowski, automotive practice leader at research firm Gartner.

Garmin signing a deal with GyPSii is a step in the right direction for the company; it shows that Garmin has realized it needs to be more than a navigation services company, Koslowski said.

Exactly how Garmin plans to use GyPSii's platform remains shrouded in mystery. At this stage, the company doesn't want to elaborate, said Jessica Myers, a Garmin spokeswoman. But its upcoming nüvifone, which combines GPS, a 3.5-inch touchscreen, a camera and support for HSDPA (High-Speed Downlink Packet Access), would be a prime candidate to leverage the platform.

Revenue sharing between the two companies is also an element of the deal, but neither company wants to elaborate on how it will work.

GyPSii sees revenue opportunities in other companies using its branding and licensing its IPR (intellectual property rights), as well as in subscription and ad revenues, said CEO Dan Harple. He added that the company will announce more deals similar to the one with Garmin during the next 60 days.

With GyPSii's platform, users can record their lives using photographs, videos and audio clips on their mobile phones, and then automatically geotag them -- including the location where a picture was taken. Users can then share the content with friends in real time.

Other ways to use GyPSii include alerting friends to an event such as a concert by sending a picture, a location and a message, or adding comments about a place like a restaurant on a map showing its location.

Now it's up to Garmin, GyPSii and other companies in the sector to convince users step-by-step that this is something they can't live without, Koslowski said.

"Users are just beginning to understand this concept," he said.