Palo Alto, Calif.-based Gravitate Inc., a new mobile location services software provider, launched its Gravitate Platform and closed a $3.7 million round of funding, the company announced.
“The Gravitate Platform … enables network operators, original equipment manufacturers, infrastructure providers and application service providers to develop and deliver location-precise services to mobile devices and telematics systems,” said John Trobough, chief executive officer of Gravitate.
The platform is location-technology agnostic, built on the Enterprise Java Bean specification, the company said. Its users require little to no expertise in wireless programming or mobile location technologies, and the EJB architecture can accommodate large numbers of transactions and concurrent users.
Following the successful completion of a recent trial, Gravitate said the product now is ready as a result of GVoice technology, which complements location-based solutions resulting from the Federal Communications Commission’s E911 mandate. GVoice performs a voice-activated computer-automated location query of a caller, transforms the location data into an XY coordinate and returns the location-accurate information. This allows content providers to offer location-precise services before E911 locating technologies are deployed.
The Gravitate Platform also contains the Client Locator and User Discovery System. CLoUDS enables callers and service providers to use the real-time location of subscribers and their proximity to each other or a common point of interest to implement networking, instant messaging, games and other applications, said Gravitate.
The company will license the platform, charging an annual fee, as well as share in the revenues each application generates.
Trobough said Gravitate will continue to seek partnership agreements and venture capital to further develop the platform to include features such as mapping and customization.
