You need to listen to the following video, and listen to the following words: Tech is Poison, and Short Nokia, and Short Garmin. GPS business is done.

Jim, let me show you something:

TomTom will zusammen mit Vodafone seinen Verkehrsdienst High Definition Traffic auch in Deutschland anbieten. Der neue Verkehrsfunk greift nicht nur auf die üblichen Staumeldequellen zurück, sondern bezieht zusätzlich GSM-Daten aus dem Vodafone-Netz in die Verkehrsmeldungen ein.

Seit November 2007 ist das System in den Niederlanden im Einsatz.

Translated:

TomTom will work together with Vodafone on their Traffic Service High Definition Traffic and offer the service in Germany. The new traffic service will not only use the usual traffic data, but will combine it with GSM data from the Vodafone network and create their own traffic system.

Since November 2007 this system has been working in the Netherlands.

Ok, so what does this mean? Look no further than the Nuvifone. The idea that they are talking about is the following.

The Cellular makers, GPS makers and GSM networks are getting together to build an integrated network where you will be able to send and receive pinpointed data. In this first application the way that High Definition Traffic works is that the cellular network companies which track the person’s cellular network can say at specific locations there are more people and thus if that tower is beside a highway it implies a traffic jam. The beauty of this solution is that no personal information is required. It’s just a cellular density calculation. Using the characteristics of the cellular tower, and combining that with GPS devices people can find out WAY before traffic jam is created. In fact Europe wants to use this system to avoid traffic jams PERIOD.

Who would not pay for a service to help you avoid a traffic jam? This is a killer application for the integration of GPS, GSM, and Cellular phones and only the beginning.

I also held off with this post until Garmin announced earnings. They were block buster and they gave good guidance. I had a hunch that when SiRF announced and GPS went ballistic a mis-pricing formed.

So Jim is Tech poison? I think not.