Nokia teams up with Oracle for maps licensing deal

Finnish firm aims to grow alternative revenue streams

After a week in which Apple's disastrous Maps app launch led to an official apology from its chief executive Tim Cook, Nokia has announced a partnership with Oracle to allow developers to use the Finnish firm's mapping software in business applications.

Announced jointly by the two firms on Monday, the move revolves around a built-in link between Oracle's Fusion Middleware MapViewer tool and the Nokia Location Platform (NLP).

This will mean users of Oracle products can license the use of mapping information from over 200 countries owned by Nokia within their applications.

This will also ensure a consistent mapping service in use across all Oracle products among the firm's customer base, offering a more streamlined approach to the use of GPS data, the firms said.

"The inclusion of the NLP into Oracle Fusion Middleware MapViewer is an important proof point of our leadership in providing the best, enterprise-class map in the market," said Roy Kolstad, vice president for Nokia in North America.

"It will help businesses save time, money and resources while allowing them to gain a geographic perspective on their business, enabling better decisions."

Oracle's vice president of product management for Oracle Server Technologies, Jim Steiner, touted the partnership as the only one of its kind in the industry.

"Oracle is the only systems provider that delivers integrated location and mapping capabilities in every layer of our technology stack," he said.

"Few data providers have the ability to provide both map data for analytics and integrated platform services for the creation of mapping applications in one solution."

The deal is a welcome boost for Nokia as it looks for to expand its revenue streams in the face of stagnating smartphone sales due to intense competition from Apple and Android devices, as it pins much of its future on sales of its new Lumia devices.