TEL AVIV, May 9 (Reuters) – Facebook Inc is in
advanced talks to acquire Israeli mobile satellite navigation
start-up Waze for $800 million to $1 billion, business daily
Calcalist reported on Thursday.
Due diligence is underway after a term sheet was signed,
Calcalist said, adding that talks began six months ago.
Waze uses satellite signals from members’ smartphones to
generate maps and traffic data, which it then shares with other
users, offering real-time traffic info.
Officials at Waze declined to comment on the report.
Waze and Facebook partnered in October 2012 when Waze
released its updated version that allows users to share their
drive with their Facebook friends.
This would be Facebook’s third acquisition in Israel. It
bought Snaptu in 2011 for $70 million and Face.com in 2012 for
$60 million.
In the last year, Waze tripled its user base to 45 million
and in March alone, 1.5 million users downloaded the free mobile
navigation app, Calcalist said.
