This via Reuters…
Nokia is promoting Groupon Inc offers on the maps on its Lumia smartphones as it tries to stand out in a crowded field vying for the attention of U.S. cellphone owners.
The partnership with Groupon, announced on Wednesday, shows Groupon Now! offers on Nokia maps with a green "G" icon. U.S. users can buy offers from their phones and get directions to the locations to redeem the offers using Nokia’s navigation system.
Nokia is not sharing financial details of the partnership with Groupon. No other such deals have been announced yet, but in the future Nokia could look for different ways of monetizing its maps, such as giving phone owners easier ways to make reservations or bookings, Michael Halbherr, Nokia’s executive vice president of location and commerce, told Reuters.
Nokia, the Finnish cellphone maker, has been trying to reverse its decline in the smartphone market by adopting Microsoft software, but has had little success against rivals Apple and Samsung.