is a Japanese

map A map is a symbolic depiction of interrelationships, commonly spatial, between things within a space. A map may be annotated with text and graphics. Like any graphic, a map may be fixed to paper or other durable media, or may be displayed on ...

publishing Publishing is the activities of making information, literature, music, software, and other content, physical or digital, available to the public for sale or free of charge. Traditionally, the term publishing refers to the creation and distribu ...

company. Founded in 1948 as the in Beppu,

Kyūshū is the third-largest island of Japan's four main islands and the most southerly of the four largest islands (i.e. excluding Okinawa and the other Ryukyu (''Nansei'') Islands). In the past, it has been known as , and . The historical regio ...

, the company is known as a maker of residential maps and software used in personal computers and

automotive navigation system An automotive navigation system is part of the automobile controls or a third party add-on used to find direction in an automobile. It typically uses a satellite navigation device to get its position data which is then correlated to a position on ...

s. It is a leading Japanese company in the production of mapping software.

Operations

Zenrin provides navigation software and expertise to

Nissan is a Japanese multinational Automotive industry, automobile manufacturer headquartered in Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan. The company sells its vehicles under the ''Nissan'' and ''Infiniti'' brands, and formerly the ''Datsun'' brand, with in-house ...

's North American division,

Honda commonly known as just Honda, is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate automotive manufacturer headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Founded in October 1946 by Soichiro Honda, Honda has bee ...

Internavi Internavi is a vehicle telematics service offered by the Honda Motor Company to drivers in Japan. In the United States, the service is known as HondaLink, or sometimes MyLink. It provides mobile connectivity for on-demand traffic information servi ...

in-car telematics service in Japan, and other automobile and navigation systems hardware manufacturers. Zenrin is also exploring collaborative efforts with other electronics and automotive manufacturers. Field research crews collect data throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico, and Brazil, and survey businesses along American interstates to integrate into their navigation software and databases. Businesses, organizations, and travelers nationwide utilize this data in a variety of applications and settings.

Offices

Zenrin's head office is in the Zenrin-Asahi Building at 1-1-1, Muromachi, Kokura-Kita Ward,

Kitakyūshū is a city located in Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. As of June 1, 2019, Kitakyushu has an estimated population of 940,978, making it the second-largest city in both Fukuoka Prefecture and the island of Kyushu after the city of Fukuoka. It is one o ...

. The building stands in the midst of a modern shopping and cultural center called Riverwalk Kitakyūshū, on the spot where noted Edo-period mapmaker Inō Tadataka began his mapping of Kyūshū. The company also has a development center at Nakabaru Shinmachi 3–1, Tobata Ward, Kitakyushu. A map museum is located on the on 14th floor of the company's home office building. It is open from 10:00 to 17:00 on weekdays, and is closed on weekends and Japanese national holidays. Admission is ¥100. Internationally, Zenrin's American division (Zenrin USA, Inc.) and European division (Zenrin Europe

GmbH (; ) is a type of Juridical person, legal entity in German-speaking countries. It is equivalent to a (Sàrl) in the Romandy, French-speaking region of Switzerland and to a (Sagl) in the Ticino, Italian-speaking region of Switzerland. It is a ...

) are located in Burlingame,

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

and

Düsseldorf Düsseldorf is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second-largest city in the state after Cologne and the List of cities in Germany with more than 100,000 inhabitants, seventh-largest city ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

, respectively.

Executive officials

was president from 1980 until his retirement in 2001. Inheriting the company from his father, founder Masatomi Osako, he built it into a major company in mapping and vehicle-mounted navigation software. He was also the first president of the

StarFlyer Starflyer or Star Flyer may refer to: * StarFlyer, a Japanese airline * '' Star Flyer'', a sailing ship operated by Star Clippers of Sweden * Starflyer 59, an indie rock/shoegaze band from Riverside, California * The Starflyer, an alien antagonist ...

airline. He was also known as a successful racehorse owner, having owned Mile Championship winner as well as

Zenno Rob Roy (27 March 2000 – 2 September 2022) was a Japanese Thoroughbred racehorse and active sire. In a racing career which lasted from February 2003 until December 2005, he ran twenty times, winning seven races and being placed on ten further occasi ...

; who won the Autumn Tenno Sho, the

Japan Cup The is one of the most prestigious horse races in Japan. It is contested on the last Sunday of November, post time of 15:40 at Tokyo Racecourse in Fuchu, Tokyo at a distance of 2400 meters (about miles) run under weight for age conditions with ...

, and the

Arima Kinen The Arima Kinen (有馬記念) is a Conditions races, Grade I Flat racing, flat Horse racing, horse race in Japan open to Thoroughbreds three-years-old and above and the world's largest betting horserace. It is run in late December each year, over ...

in 2004. has been the President and CEO of Zenrin since April 1, 2008. Takayama joined Zenrin in 1986 and has been its Director since 2006. He graduated from Seinan Gakuin University.

References

External links

Zenrin Japan website

Zenrin Europe websiteZenrin USA website
Map companies of Japan Book publishing companies of Japan Companies based in Kitakyushu Publishing companies established in 1948 Japanese brands Mass media in Kitakyushu GIS companies Japanese companies established in 1948 Companies listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Companies listed on the Fukuoka Stock Exchange {{tech-company-stub