Digital mapping company NAVTEQ announced last week that it has released the most comprehensive maps of Egypt since the countries government lifted its ban on GPS devices in April 2009. The new maps cover 50, 000 kilometers of roads and contain over 42, 000 points of interest. NAVTEQ’s main competitor Tele Atlas, owned by PND maker TomTom, by comparison has only managed to map 25, 000 kilometers of roads and 10, 000 points of interest. Orion, a map data provider for the Middle East, is also in the competitive mix as it sells data to Google.
Right now, NAVTEQ’s Egyptian map coverage is rated “intermediate”, but in the future the company plans to release a full map for the countries 78 million citizens. Other Middle Eastern countries NAVTEQ has gathered map data for include Bahrain, Botswana, Kuwait, Lesotho, Namibia, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Swaziland and United Arab Emirates.
