Quova, Inc., the leading provider of Internet geolocation
services, today announced the Navizon(TM) Wireless Locator, a
permission-based application that can identify the location, down to a
city street level, of Web visitors accessing the Internet from Wi-Fi
enabled cell phones and laptops. The second extension to Quova's
Internet Location Intelligence platform, the Navizon Wireless Locator
provides online businesses with accurate geographic data to locate and
authenticate their Web visitors. Quova provides this alternative
location tool for situations in which their Internet Protocol (IP)
Intelligence data, which can identify a Web visitor's location down to
a 50 mile radius, may not provide sufficient granularity in
pinpointing a location.
Online businesses including broadcasters, advertisers and online
banks often need to make real-time business decisions about their Web
visitors based on geographic considerations. These businesses need to
understand where a Web visitor is located and what
geographically-based regulations apply in that location in order to
grant permission to view digital content or to serve a localised
advertisement or search result. As mobile based Internet access
increases these businesses have a need to extend their location
techniques.
Offered through an alliance with Mexens Technology, Quova will
resell the Navizon Wireless Locator as an extension to its
GeoDirectory Server 6.0. The Navizon software is a wireless
positioning system that doesn't require a GPS to provide its' location
based services. Instead it triangulates signals broadcasted from Wi-Fi
access points and Global System for Mobile communications (GSM)
cellular towers. The application uses the continuous wireless pings
emitted by Wi-Fi transmitters to accurately calculate the position of
a mobile device by measuring signal strength and applying proprietary
algorithms.
The Navizon software works on any wireless network and is based on
a collaborative database that is being enhanced daily by a growing
membership of more than 60,000 users in 60 countries. Members use a
GPS device to map the Wi-Fi and cellular landscape in their
neighborhoods. Once a user synchronises their data it is made
available to all the other users of the network so that a GPS device
is not required for location purposes of that area in the future. In
rural areas, most users are located through phone positioning from GSM
cellular towers, and in densely populated urban areas users are
primarily located using Wi-Fi signals. The current Navizon network is
growing rapidly and today contains more than 10 million mapped Wi-Fi
access points. Most urban cities in the U.S., Canada and Western
Europe have already been completely mapped.
The Navizon software does not attempt to gain access to the Wi-Fi
networks it maps, and neither Mexens Technology nor Quova collect or
store any personally identifiable information about the Web visitor
being located or about the owner of the Wi-Fi network. The data
collected includes only information about the Internet connection
including the IP and MAC addresses, the service set identifier (SSID)
code, and the signal strength of the Wi-Fi access point. To respect
individual privacy a user must grant permission and download the
Navizon application in order to allow their phone or laptop to be
located. A Web visitor might allow this access in order to access
their online bank account, watch a baseball game on MLB.TV or to place
a bet from their cell phone or laptop.
"A number of trends are converging today that make it critical for
online businesses to know where their Web visitors are coming from,"
said Marie Alexander, Quova's CEO. "The need for better automated
systems becomes even more important as the proliferation of mobile and
wireless devices offers multiple channels for customers to access the
Internet. Understanding customer location-what we call "Internet
Location Intelligence" - is one of the most powerful and economical
tools companies have to build and protect their online business
Navizon shares a strong commitment to personal privacy, making their
approach an easy addition to our platform."
Quova's GeoDirectory Server 6.0 - Internet Location Intelligence
platform announced earlier this month can instantly identify the type
of Internet connection a Web visitor is using and deploy the most
effective technique to locate that device, whether it is IP
geolocation or another real-time locating technique. The recently
announced Proxy Locator and the Navizon Wireless Locator are the first
two extensions to this platform and provide alternative location tools
for situations in which the IP address may not be as accurate in
pinpointing the Web visitor's location.
"The geolocation synergies between Quova and the Navizon
application were designed at the core," said Cyril Houri, CEO and
Founder of Mexens Technology. "Given Quova's leadership in the
Internet geolocation market, they were a natural partner for us to
provide information to supplement their IP Intelligence data when
greater granularity is required for locating a Web visitor."
Availability
GeoDirectory Server 6.0 is available now and the Proxy Locator and
Navizon Wireless Locators will be available in Q3 of 2007 directly
through Quova and indirectly through authorised resellers and
partners. Quova's solution is comprised of data, software and targeted
professional services and is priced on a subscription model with
customers paying a fee based on the number of queries and type of use.
About Mexens Technology
Founded in early 2005 by Cyril Houri, Mexens Technology is a
privately held software development company with headquarters in New
York City. Houri's first company, Infosplit which provided geolocating
technologies, was acquired by Quova in 2004. Navizon is a
software-only wireless positioning system that triangulates signals
broadcasted from Wi-Fi access points and cellular towers to help the
users find their way in most major metropolitan areas worldwide.
About Quova
Quova gives online businesses the ability to determine the
geographic location of their Web visitors. The company offers the most
comprehensive, deeply researched and reliable Internet geolocation
data available today--without compromising individual privacy.
Thousands of online businesses depend on Quova's data and services to
detect and prevent fraud, ensure regulatory compliance, manage digital
content distribution, and localise ads and web content. The company's
customer base includes the top three search engine sites, Major League
Baseball Advanced Media, the BBC, Ladbroke's and Cisco Systems, and
investors include Mobius Venture Partners and IDG. Quova was founded
in 2000 and is based in Mountain View, California.