BMW, Audi and Mercedes snap up Nokia maps for €2.5bn

German carmakers BMW, Audi and Mercedes will pay around €2.5 billion to buy Nokia's maps business, beating out high-tech rivals for location services seen as key to the future of self-driving cars.

Germany’s three premium carmakers will hold equal stakes in the business, known as HERE, clubbing together to keep the assets from falling into the hands of Internet rivals in Silicon Valley or China.

The deal has an enterprise value of €2.8 billion, including liabilities worth nearly €300 million, for which Nokia will compensate the carmakers, the Finnish company said.

It is unclear how rival carmakers may respond.

"There is a risk that the other automakers will be pushed further into the arms of Google, " said independent financial analyst Richard Windsor. – (Reuters)