SatNav has launched voice based navigation direction service that enables one to call SatNav to seek directions/route help (presently available in Andhra Pradesh (6:30am – 11:30pm) and plans to cover the entire country over by March 2009).
Termed LCU,( i.e. Lost? Need Directions? Call Us!) the service can be accessed via short code by mobile users (Reliance users can use 56694 to avail this service).
On dialing the code the customer gets connected to a live agent who will provide the customer with the required information on a point of interest such as an ATM, restaurant, hospitals, schools, corporate, amongst others or provide the shortest possible route to reach their destination after knowing their current and final locations. This information can be noted down by the caller in the phone call itself, or he can get it as an SMS which can be referred to during the journey.
This is an interesting play of combining voice with navigation (read this interesting discussion on GPS/Navigation: Why Sat Nav(s) are not for Indian consumers?). Very often, one ends up calling friend/family to get the driving directions. A service like this, if delivered well can significantly improve the stickiness of Satnav – has the power to be what Justdial is to local search.
What’s your opinion?
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I never thought this kind of service is possible in India. The reason? The addresses are simply not standardized. To illustrate my point I will give one of my friends’ address in a northern city: Khanpur Bunglow Rd Crossing, Near bus depo, Raju Chaiwale ka dukan ke samne wala building (this is close to what he said to me 7 yrs back). Amazingly he writes nearly the same thing as postal address.
GPS can still be used if you have a way to personalize any point of the map, but I doubt such frameworks are reliable enough and if it is then whether a traditional country like mera bharat mahan would see any advantage in it’s adoption.
I agree with what S says, but then there is a way to circumvent these problems and have users add ‘Raju Chaiwala Ka Dukaan’ landmarks to loacations that SatNav executives can use while giving directions – that is someone asks them; the information can be used. Also, I think this will work as there are more and more new landmarks coming up in metros in the form of malls and multiplexes and business centres. Now the Raju Chaiwala ka Dukaans have been transformed into CCD’s which can easily be tracked on GPRS.
Actually SatNav has foreseen this situation about Bharath and has started a Citizen Mapper venture, here every citizen can send in the POI changes that happen in their locality and will recieve Rs.5 for every correct POI that they point out. This Scheme has been successful so far and has helped SatNav to provide the best accuracy ever.
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