Platform Accelerates Time-to-Market and Permits Application Customization for Increased Branding

SAN JOSE, Calif., Dec. 4 /PRNewswire/ -- deCarta (formerly Telcontar), the leading supplier of software platforms and services for the Location-Based Services (LBS) industry, has announced today the launch of the deCarta Navigation Software Developer Kit (SDK). The new developer kit enables personal navigation device and smart phone manufacturers to quickly build and bring to market highly customized and differentiated navigation applications. The SDK also provides the manufacturer the freedom and ability to reinforce their brand with a customizable look and feel.

deCarta's Navigation SDK builds on the strength of the company's Rich Map Engine(TM) -- the same underlying gold-standard technology broadly deployed by today's leading Internet, wireless and navigation solution providers such as Google, Ask.com, Verizon and Sprint. Combining unparalleled routing speed and an extensive array of navigation capabilities, deCarta's Navigation SDK allows for quick introduction of products with attractive and best-in-class functionality targeted for high return on investment.

    Navigation functionality supported by the SDK includes:
    * Fast route calculations, supporting drivers preference for shortest,
      fastest, avoid toll roads, and avoid freeways along with support for
      time-of-day turn restrictions
    * Multi-point routing
    * Efficient ways to select a street address or desired point-of-interest
      as a destination
    * Easy to understand 2D and 3D maps with preferred points-of-interest
      shown along a highlighted route
    * Guidance to ensure that as the route is followed, timely, appropriate,
      and generated in an easy to understand text, voice, and graphical
      information about a pending maneuver
    * Patented algorithms to accurately determine a vehicle position
      eliminating GPS errors and ambiguity

"In the industry's rapidly growing and competitive environment, manufacturers must be agile in bringing differentiated applications to market," said J. Kim Fennell, President and CEO of deCarta. "The Navigation SDK allows personal navigation device producers to focus their resources on customizing and enhancing the user interface, rather than spending valuable time constructing the increasingly complex navigation platform."

Providing the Bridge to Connected Navigation

As the industry moves toward connected navigation to improve user experience and brand loyalty, deCarta's Navigation SDK provides future migration to dynamic on-board navigation applications giving users up-to-the- minute traffic, road, weather and local search by linking the mobile unit to deCarta's flagship Drill Down Server(R) -- already powering some of the most successful location-based service applications on the market. The Navigation SDK also ensures application compatibility with new releases of the underlying route engine, while providing a uniform data model to enable the use of best- in-class map data from multiple vendors without impacting application performance.

Ease of Integration

deCarta's Navigation SDK is a comprehensive development suite with software, sample code, sample data and complete documentation. The SDK provides an Application Programming Interface (API) for accessing all of the functions required to create customized navigation applications, allowing customers to bypass the "trial and error" phase, reduce development time, and bring products to market faster. To help accelerate development, sample applications in source code that illustrate the use of all the navigation functionality supported will be provided to developers.

    Navigation Device Screen Detail Examples

      2D View
      Photo:  NewsCom:  
http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20061204/SFM056-b

      3D View
      Photo:  NewsCom:  
http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20061204/SFM056-a

    Demonstration and Availability

The Navigation SDK will be generally available for WinCE in Q1 2007 and for Linux in Q2 2007. Demonstration of deCarta's Navigation SDK will be available at the 2007 International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) being held in Las Vegas, Nevada in January. To schedule a demonstration, please contact deCarta at 1-408-625-3508.

    For more product information, visit

www.decarta.com/products/navsdk/index.html .

About deCarta

deCarta is the leading geospatial software platform that powers today's most successful Location-Based Services (LBS) applications such as those deployed at Google Maps, Yahoo, Ask.com, Verizon and Sprint. The company's unique, patented technology is ideal for high-volume LBS applications for use in Internet, mobile, personal navigation and telematics applications where scalability, speed, and reliability are vital. Its Drill Down Server geospatial software platform, Rich Map Engine and Hosted Web Service is preferred by application developers and service providers who also want the flexibility to customize map styles, utilize unique routing capabilities and self-brand. deCarta customers and technology partners include AND, Appello, Ask.com, ATX, Hotels.com, Google, Local Matters, Maps.com, Motorola, NAVTEQ, Networks In Motion, Pharos, Rand McNally, Tele Atlas, TeleNav, Yahoo! and Zillow. deCarta is privately held and headquartered in San Jose, California with international offices in the UK and China. www.decarta.com.

NOTE: deCarta, the deCarta logo, Rich Map Engine and Drill Down Server are trademarks or registered trademarks of deCarta, Inc. in the United States and/or other countries. All other company, brand and product names are marks of their respective holders.

Web site: http://www.decarta.com/