Nokia's acquisition of Navteq on track to close within a week

By Lisa Kerner

Charlotte, N.C., July 2 - The European Commission granted its approval of the proposed merger of Nokia Corp. and Navteq Corp., it was announced on Wednesday.

Nokia said that with all approvals now in place, the company expects to close its acquisition of Navteq within the next five business days.

In March it was reported that the European Commission opened an investigation after an initial market study raised questions about vertical competition. The European Commission had until Aug. 8 to make its decision.

Nokia agreed to acquire Navteq for $78 cash per share in a transaction valued at about $7.7 billion net of Navteq's existing cash balance, it was previously reported.

"Navteq will play a key role in our internet services strategy with world-leading maps and navigation industry expertise, a strong customer base and industry-leading map data and technology platform offering the broadest geographical coverage," Nokia president and chief executive officer Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo stated in a company news release.

"We are pleased that the commission has reached the same conclusion we have regarding Navteq's ability to continue providing broad access to all our customers," Navteq president and CEO Judson Green added.

Chicago-based Navteq provides digital map information for automotive navigation systems, mobile navigation devices, internet-based mapping applications and government and business solutions. Navteq also owns Traffic.com.

Nokia manufactures mobile devices and provides equipment and services for mobile networks. The company is based in Espoo, Finland.

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