Changewave Research: Trends in Consumer & Corporate GPS Devices

ChangeWave Research: Trends in Consumer & Corporate GPS Devices

Consumer & Corporate GPS Devices

Garmin Rules The Market But Tom-Tom Has Momentum

Overview

Once a revolutionary military application, GPS technology is now a common aspect of everyday life, with an ever growing number of applications across a wide range of industries including autos, telecom, aerospace and consumer electronics.

We recently conducted two ChangeWave surveys that looked at market trends for portable GPS devices – a September survey on consumer demand (n=1,878) and a November 12-23 survey on corporate demand (n=989).

I. Consumer GPS Devices

Garmin Dominates the Current Market

Consumer demand for portable GPS devices remains steady, with 28% of respondents saying they currently own one.

(1) Who is the manufacturer of the portable GPS device you most recently purchased? (n=525)

Current
Survey
Sep ’07 / Previous
Survey
Aug ’07
Garmin / 54% / 54%
Magellan / 12% / 13%
Tom-Tom / 6% / 5%
Lowrance / 3% / 4%
Mio / 2% / 2%
Navman / 2% / 2%
Don’t Know / 6% / 7%
Other / 11% / 11%

By a better than four-to-one margin, Garmin (54%; unchanged) is the overwhelming industry leader over second place Magellan (12%; down 1-pt) among current owners. Third place Tom-Tom (6%) has risen 1-pt in market share since our previous survey in August.

Planned Purchases

In terms of planned purchases, the findings point to a big jump in consumer demand – much of which is attributable to the holiday buying season. Better than one-in-ten respondents (11%) said they plan on buying a GPS device in the next 90 days – more than double our previous survey results.

(2) Who is the manufacturer of the portable GPS device you plan on buying? (n=210)

Current
Survey
Sep ‘07 / Previous
Survey
Aug ‘07
Garmin / 47% / 54%
Tom-Tom / 10% / 7%
Magellan / 3% / 5%
Mio / 2% / 0%
Don't Know / 31% / 25%
Other / 2% / 11%

Garmin (47%) continues to lead in terms of planned purchases by a wide margin, but still finds itself down 7-pts from the previous survey. Tom-Tom (10%) is second in terms of planned purchases and shows strong momentum – having gained 3-pts since August to widen its lead over third place Magellan (3%; down 2-pts), which continues to look weaker.

Consumer Satisfaction

(3) How satisfied are you with the portable GPS device you most recently purchased? (n=525)

Current
Survey
Sep ‘07 / Previous
Survey
Aug ‘07
Very Satisfied / 45% / 44%
Somewhat Satisfied / 43% / 42%
Somewhat Unsatisfied / 7% / 8%
Very Unsatisfied / 3% / 3%
Don't Know / 3% / 3%

Satisfaction Breakdown by Manufacturer

Garmin / Magellan / Tom-Tom
Current
Survey
Sep ‘07 / Previous
Survey
Aug ‘07 / Current
Survey
Sep ‘07 / Previous
Survey
Aug ‘07 / Current
Survey
Sep ‘07 / Previous
Survey
Aug ‘07
Very Satisfied / 49% / 47% / 35% / 36% / 41% / NA
Somewhat Satisfied / 43% / 43% / 54% / 45% / 47% / NA
Somewhat Unsatisfied / 5% / 5% / 6% / 12% / 8% / NA
Very Unsatisfied / 2% / 2% / 2% / 5% / 3% / NA
Don't Know / 1% / 3% / 3% / 2% / 0% / NA

Bottom Line – Consumer GPS Devices: Garmin maintains its dominant position as the top manufacturer of portable GPS devices for consumers – holding a four-fold lead over second place Magellan among current owners. Garmin (49% Very Satisfied) also holds a wide lead in consumer satisfaction over Magellan (35% Very Satisfied) and is the leader in terms of future planned purchases. We note that Tom-Tom is second in terms of planned purchases and consumer satisfaction – and is showing considerable momentum.

II. Corporate GPS Device Trends

Garmin Dominates But Tom-Tom Has Momentum

Corporate use of GPS devices is on the rise, with 18% of respondents now saying their company uses GPS devices, a 2-pt increase since our previous survey in August 2007.

(1) Does your company currently use any GPS devices or services? (n=989)

Current
Survey
Nov ‘07 / Previous
Survey
Aug ‘07
Yes / 18% / 16%
No / 79% / 81%
No Answer / 3% / 3%

What’s true for the consumer market is also true for the corporate GPS market, as here too Garmin (47%) is the overwhelming market share leader. The company has actually picked up 2-pts since our August measure. And while Tom-Tom (12%; up 5-pts) remains a distant second, it again shows the strongest momentum.

In contrast, Magellan (8%; down 7-pts) has fallen to third place, while Trimble Navigation (7%; down 5-pts) has fallen to fourth position.

(2) Who is the manufacturer of the GPS devices your company currently uses? (Check All That Apply) (n=179)

Current
Survey
Nov ‘07 / Previous
Survey
Aug ‘07
Garmin / 47% / 45%
Tom-Tom / 12% / 7%
Magellan / 8% / 15%
Trimble Navigation / 7% / 12%
Navman/Mobile Workforce Solutions / 4% / 4%
Don't Know / 22% / 24%
Other / 23% / 16%

We also asked about GPS service providers, and not surprisingly Garmin (35%; up 2-pts) is the clear frontrunner among corporate users. Tom-Tom (8%; up 2-pts) and Verizon (7%; up 2-pts) show some momentum but trail Garmin by wide margins.

(3) Who provides the GPS services/software your company currently uses? (Check All That Apply) (n=179)

Current
Survey
Nov ‘07 / Previous
Survey
Aug ‘07
Garmin / 35% / 33%
Tom-Tom / 8% / 6%
Verizon / 7% / 5%
AT&T (Cingular) / 4% / 5%
Navman/Mobile Workforce Solutions / 4% / 5%
Sprint/Nextel / 4% / 1%
@Road (Trimble Navigation) / 3% / 6%
Don't Know / 31% / 32%
Other / 16% / 19%

On the downside, Trimble Navigation’s @Road (3%; down 3-pts) shows the biggest market share decline.

Planned Purchases

In terms of planned purchases for 1st Quarter 2008, the findings again point to Garmin (46%; up 2-pts) as the overwhelming top choice, with Tom-Tom (12%) second – up an impressive 7-pts from previously.

There's still more grim news here, however, for Magellan (8%; down 4-pts), and Trimble Navigation (6%; down 5-pts), as seen in the following chart:

(4) Who is the manufacturer of the GPS devices your company is planning on using? (Check All That Apply) (n=171)

Current
Survey
Nov ‘07 / Previous
Survey
Aug ‘07
Garmin / 46% / 44%
Tom-Tom / 12% / 5%
Magellan / 8% / 12%
Trimble Navigation / 6% / 11%
Navman/Mobile Workforce Solutions / 2% / 4%
Don't Know / 27% / 30%
Other / 18% / 14%

(5) Who will most likely provide the GPS services/software your company is planning on using? (Check All That Apply) (n=171)

Current
Survey
Nov ‘07 / Previous
Survey
Aug ‘07
Garmin / 32% / 32%
Tom-Tom / 10% / 4%
Verizon / 8% / 6%
@Road (Trimble Navigation) / 5% / 5%
AT&T (Cingular) / 4% / 4%
Sprint/Nextel / 4% / 1%
Navman/Mobile Workforce Solutions / 3% / 3%
Don't Know / 33% / 37%
Other / 14% / 18%

Regarding corporate plans for using GPS service providers in the next quarter, Garmin (32%; unchanged) remains the market leader but Tom-Tom (10%) has jumped 6-pts since our August survey and is now in second place.

Other Corporate GPS Findings

(6) Which of the following purposes does your company use GPS devices for? (Check All That Apply) (n=179)

Current
Survey
Nov ‘07 / Previous
Survey
Aug ‘07
Navigation & Directions / 69% / 59%
Surveying and Mapping (e.g., Geology, Real Estate Mapping) / 18% / 22%
Mobile Workforce Management / 15% / 15%
Location Based Services / 13% / 13%
Industrial, Agricultural or Construction Positioning/Guidance / 12% / 13%
Mobile Resource Management (MRM) / 11% / 10%
Military Applications / 8% / 6%
Don't Know / 2% / 4%
Other / 3% / 5%

Nearly seven-in-ten respondents (69%) say their company uses GPS devices for Navigation and Directions, up 10-pts since August 2007.

(7) Which of the following best describes the nature of the GPS devices your company currently uses/plans on using?

Type of
GPS Device
Company is
Currently Using
(n=179) / Type of
GPS Device
Company
Plans on Using
(n=171)
Stand-Alone Portable GPS Device / 68% / 66%
GPS Device Built-in to a Vehicle / 39% / 36%
GPS Device Integrated into a Cell Phone or Smart Phone / 14% / 21%
Don't Know / 1% / 4%
Other / 8% / 6%

Stand-Alone Portable GPS Devices (68%) are the most typical type of corporate GPS devices.

Significantly, while just 14% of corporate users say they are currently using GPS Devices Integrated into a Cell Phone or Smart Phone, this surges to 21% among corporate users planning to use GPS devices in 1Q 2008.

Bottom Line – Corporate GPS Devices: Just as among consumers, Garmin is the big player in the corporate market – with close to one-in-two corporate users saying they use a Garmin device. While Tom-Tom remains a distant second, the company shows the greatest momentum in terms of planned corporate buying. In contrast, Magellan and Trimble Navigation both show a declining corporate market share.
III. ChangeWave Research Methodology

This report is based on two ChangeWave Alliance surveys – one on consumer buying and the other on corporate purchasing trends. The first, completed September 10-17, focused on personal demand for GPS devices among 1,879 consumers; the second, completed November 23rd, looked at corporate demand among 989 corporate purchasers.

The Alliance’s proprietary research and business intelligence gathering system is based upon the systematic gathering of valuable business and investment information directly over the Internet from accredited members.

ChangeWave surveys its Alliance members on a range of business and investment research and intelligence topics, collects feedback from them electronically, interprets and reconciles the information in a cohesive manner and converts the information into valuable quantitative and qualitative reports.

The Alliance has assembled its membership team from senior technology and business executives in leading companies of select industries. Nearly 3 out of every 5 members (56%) have advanced degrees (e.g., Master’s or Ph.D.) and 93% have at least a four-year bachelor’s degree.

The business and investment intelligence provided by the Alliance provides a real-time view of companies, technologies and business trends in key market sectors, along with an in-depth perspective of the macro economy – well in advance of other available sources.

IV. About ChangeWave Research

ChangeWave Research, a subsidiary of InvestorPlace Media, LLC, identifies and quantifies "change" in industries and companies through surveying a network of thousands of business executives and professionals working in more than 20 industries.

ChangeWave has a very unique asset in its 13,000-member Alliance. We have assembled our membership team from a broad cross section of more than 20 vertical markets such as telecom, semiconductors, data storage, and biotechnology, along with a wide range of professional disciplines including CIOs, IT managers and programmers, executive management, scientists, engineers and sales personnel.

The ChangeWave Alliance is composed of senior technology and business executives in leading companies - credentialed professionals who spend their everyday lives working on the frontline of technological change.

This proprietary research and business intelligence gathering system provides a real-time view of companies, technologies and business trends in key market sectors along with an in-depth perspective of the macro economy - well in advance of other available sources. ChangeWave surveys its 13,000 Alliance members on a wide range of investment research topics and converts the findings into valuable investment and business intelligence reports. ChangeWave delivers its products and services on the Web at www.ChangeWave.com.

ChangeWave Research does not make any warranties, express or implied, as to results to be obtained from using the information in this report. Investors should obtain individual financial advice based on their own particular circumstances before making any investment decisions based upon information in this report.

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