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March 25, 2008
Car Electronics |
| Announcement |
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KENWOOD and Garmin enter into new aftermarket collaboration agreement
for AV-integrated navigation systems for the consumer aftermarket |
| KENWOOD Corporation (President and CEO: Kazuo Shiohata; head office: Tokyo, Japan) and Garmin Ltd (Chairman and CEO: Dr. Min Kao; parent company: Cayman Islands; development and sales subsidiary: Olathe, Kansas, USA; manufacturing subsidiary: Taiwan) have agreed on an exclusive sales right agreement for AV-integrated navigation systems for the consumer aftermarket. This agreement is designed to build on the strong relationship already in place between KENWOOD and Garmin. |
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| 1. KENWOOD’s strategy for car multimedia and its alliance with Garmin |
KENWOOD has been enhancing the car multimedia segment within its Car Electronics business through strategic investments focusing on the development of car navigation systems, as one of its corporate growth strategies.
As a part of these initiatives, in 2006, KENWOOD developed and launched a flash memory in-car navigation system in the US and European markets as the first collaborative aftermarket navigation products based on a new concept of combining KENWOOD's in-car AV systems (TV/DVD/CD receivers) with Garmin's navigation PCB board units which were originally designed for *PNDs. In 2007, KENWOOD released the first AV-integrated navigation systems with Garmin's navigation PCB board units built in, and expanded the market to regions such as Asia, the Middle and Near East and Oceania. Further, KENWOOD extended this concept into optional products for both Japanese and overseas automotive dealers and they have been well accepted. |
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| 2. Goal: the collaboration between KENWOOD and Garmin |
| Through the collaboration with Garmin since 2006, KENWOOD has been able to commercialize in-car AV-integrated navigation systems that provide various advantages for customers, such as Garmin's "easy-to-use" navigation operation with touch panel control on a larger screen, multiple AV functions and high expandability. |
| 3. Prospect for the future |
To reinforce the partnership between the two companies, in December last year KENWOOD and Garmin entered into an exclusive sales right agreement for AV-integrated navigation systems for the retail consumer market. Per the terms of this agreement, Garmin and KENWOOD have agreed to mutual exclusivity for in-car AV-integrated navigation systems for the consumer retail aftermarket such as US, Canada, Europe and Japan.
Under this agreement KENWOOD has already started shipping new product line for 2008 and it has been well received from both dealers and customers in global markets. |
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| About Garmin (founded in 1989) |
| The global leader in satellite navigation, Garmin Ltd. and its subsidiaries have designed, manufactured, marketed and sold navigation, communication and information devices and applications since 1989 - most of which are enabled by GPS technology. Garmin's products serve automotive, mobile, wireless, outdoor recreation, marine, aviation, and OEM applications. |
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| About KENWOOD (founded in 1946) |
KENWOOD Group is "Reaching out to discover, inspire and enhance the enjoyment of life" as part of its bold, new vision for the future. As a leader in "Mobile & Home Multimedia Systems", KENWOOD is comprised of three businesses (Car Electronics, Communications Equipment and Home Electronics), 11 domestic and 25 overseas subsidiaries around the world.
In the Car Electronics business, while continuing to focus on consumer products, KENWOOD Group has been launching innovative and sophisticated products onto the market, and they are respected as a high quality brand around the world. At the same time, it has been acquiring new customers also in OEM, expanding the scope of its business activities. |
| * PND: Portable/Personal Navigation Device |
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Dr. Min Kao (on the right) and
Mr. Haruo Kawahara, Chairman of KENWOOD (on the left)
at the agreement-signing ceremony (December 2007) |
Flash memory AV-integrated in-car navigation system
for the US market,”DNX-8120” (on the top)
CD receiver with built-in flash memory navigation as a dealer optional product for the Japanese market, “MNA-350” (on the bottom) |
| KENWOOD Group is "Reaching out to discover, inspire and enhance the enjoyment of life" as part of its bold, new vision for the future. As a leader in the field of "Mobile & Home Multimedia Systems", KENWOOD is comprised of three businesses (Car Electronics, Communications Equipment and Home Electronics), 11 domestic and 25 overseas subsidiaries around the world. |
For inquiries regarding this article, please contact:
Public & Investor Relations Office, Corporate Relations Division, KENWOOD Corporation
TEL: +81 42 (646) 6724 FAX: +81 42 (646) 1440 E-mail: pr.qa@kenwood.co.jp |
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