Traveldoo adopts Maporama's location services

PARIS -- Traveldoo Technologies, a European provider of electronic travel management systems, has announced the integration of Maporama's online location-centric services into its software solutions Traveldoo ShopSite, Traveldoo Portal and Traveldoo Mobile. Maporama is a leading provider of online location-centric solutions.

Traveldoo's customers have now the ability to visualize on a single map, in a single click, company's preferred hotel properties, meeting places, customers, partners and company offices. Before going on a trip, travelers can print and download onto their PDA's maps related to the details of their reservations (flights, trains, hotel rooms, car rentals). Travelers on the move will benefit from additional innovations as personalized and actionable mobile location-centric content.

For the incorporation of Maporama's location-centric features within its products, Traveldoo opted for Maporama Application Programming Interface Library (MAPIL), a very complete library of programming interfaces allowing for the development of innovative location-centric applications as well as for seamless access to the market's most exhaustive database containing detailed street level maps of cities across four continents.

"Thanks to Maporama and its highly-flexible interfaces, we have been able to rapidly deliver a business trip planning process enriched with adaptable map and location information services," said Olivier Mindren, Vice President, Marketing, Traveldoo.

Booking capabilities

Mindren said Traveldoo provides online business travel planning and booking capabilities, dynamic policy management, travel supplier relationship management and travel spending intelligence services. The integration of personalized location-centric functionality makes it easier for travelers and travel arrangers to plan business trips. 

"As an innovative player on its market, Traveldoo chose a product guaranteeing a total freedom in terms of integration of geocentric features within its products. This new reference confirms the great competitive advantage our products offer," said Laurent Vermot-Gauchy, Maporama's CEO.

Traveldoo ShopSite is marketed as a highly flexible, interoperable and neutral solution that helps large organizations reduce the total cost of travel purchasing, enhance travel supply chain visibility, increase control over travel spending and make travelers' life easier.

Last March, Traveldoo received €1,2 million in second round financing from Entrepreneur Venture and existing investor SEEFT Ventures. Chausson Finance were advisor to Traveldoo on the deal. To date the company has raised a total of €2,5 million. The company said this new round of funding gives Traveldoo the resources to further expand its European business and strengthen its technology lead over competitors.

Growth in Europe

"Our technology and our ability to deliver successful projects are proven," said Nabih El Aroussi, President, Traveldoo. "Our solutions have been deployed by very large organizations in different European countries. Traveldoo is ideally positioned to take advantage of opportunities in Europe where the market is gaining momentum."

"Strong management, great technology platform, relevant strategic positioning. We are convinced that Traveldoo has the potential to become the leading European software provider for online business travel management," said Frederic Zablocki Partner of Entrepreneur Venture.

"Since our original investment in 2000, Traveldoo has clearly demonstrated it has great technology vision and sector expertise. The new funding will help the company to expand its sales and marketing operations," added Regis Saleur, Partner of SEEFT Ventures.

Maporama claims to be the only location-centric solutions provider to localize an address of over a billion of consumers around the world offering, in addition to industry standard European and North American coverage, detailed street maps of Eastern Europe, Australia, South America.

Today, the company is building a unique approach to enterprise-wide location-centric applications, compliant with any existing communication platform (Web, Wireless, PDAs, set-top-boxes) as well as with any existing cellular or landline telephone device through speech technology. Maporama has more than 500 customers in over 15 countries including Yahoo!, Aventis, Europcar, Dr Martens, Estée Lauder, Thomson Multimedia, UBS Warburg, Diageo.

Headquartered in Paris , Maporama markets its products in Europe and in the USA.