Demand for vehicle navigation systems growing

Chicago-based Navteq, a provider of digital maps for vehicle navigation said North American annual sales of embedded navigation systems exceeded one-million units in 2005.

Based on customer sales data from January through October 2005, Navteq said approximately 1-million vehicles were sold with factory-installed navigation systems. That was more than 40% over recorded sales from the same time period in 2004, noted Dean VonBank, vp & gm of Navteq’s North American vehicle business unit.

He added that the in-vehicle navigation industry in North America has grown significantly since its inception in 1996, with the most notable increases occurring over the past five years.