According to German daily newspaper Financial Times Deutschland, Garmin has entered into exclusive talks to buy German navigation software supplier Navigon. The price is estimated around €50 million, wrote the newpaper according to a source involved with the deal. The sale could happen in June.

 

Navigon is currently owned at 90 percent by private equity firm General Atlantic. The firm took over the company in May 2008, increasing its stake from 25 percent to 90 percent.

 

According to rumors heard in the last few months, mobile navigation supplier TeleNav could have also been interested in the acquisition of Navigon.

 

Navigon had been for sale for several years but the financial crisis and the advent of free mobile navigation solutions from Nokia and Google did not help to sell the company earlier. A €50 million price tag seems to be quite a bargain for Navigon. It is definitely indicative of the value associated with navigation software these days.