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Google's Next Big Money Maker Could Be the Maps on Your Phone (bloomberg.com)
Google became the world's most profitable internet company on the back of search advertising. Now, it's turning another popular web service into a major cash machine. From a report: Google Maps is an indispensable part of life for more than 1 billion people, who use it to commute, explore new cities or find a hot new restaurant. The service has been mostly free, and free from ads, since it launched 14 years ago.
Interviews with Google executives and customers show this is changing as the internet giant increases the ways advertisers can reach Maps users, while raising prices for some businesses that use the underlying technology. The app now regularly highlights sponsored locations, and shows extra paid listings when people look for nearby gas stations, coffee shops or other businesses. "There's a big opportunity for them to ramp up monetization," said Andy Taylor, associate director of research at digital marketing agency Merkle. "They've been slow-playing it."
"Sometimes I say the most under-monetized asset that I cover is Google Maps," Brian Nowak, an analyst at Morgan Stanley, said while interviewing Google's business chief Philipp Schindler at a recent conference. "It's almost like a utility where it's kind of waiting for you to flip the switch on." Schindler's response showed that Google isn't waiting anymore.
Interviews with Google executives and customers show this is changing as the internet giant increases the ways advertisers can reach Maps users, while raising prices for some businesses that use the underlying technology. The app now regularly highlights sponsored locations, and shows extra paid listings when people look for nearby gas stations, coffee shops or other businesses. "There's a big opportunity for them to ramp up monetization," said Andy Taylor, associate director of research at digital marketing agency Merkle. "They've been slow-playing it."
"Sometimes I say the most under-monetized asset that I cover is Google Maps," Brian Nowak, an analyst at Morgan Stanley, said while interviewing Google's business chief Philipp Schindler at a recent conference. "It's almost like a utility where it's kind of waiting for you to flip the switch on." Schindler's response showed that Google isn't waiting anymore.
OpenStreetMap's Android app works like a charm offline, is in F-Droid, and costs nothing.
I especially like its track recording feature with height map and everything. Plus favorites/notes with text/images/sound. And all are just simple files.
But the fact that every damn trash can (literally!) and footpath in our city and surrounding forests is in there is just damn amazing!
Why again would I use Google Maps?
Has it any features to offer that OSM hasn't?
Can you recommend a privacy respecting implementation for Android? I think you're right, and it's a bit past time to be switching.
Nail in the coffin and all that jazz. I'm moving *everything* off Google gradually. We tried the experiment, and got fucked. I'd rather pay for services and have some leverage with misbehaving corporations.
Karta GPS and Maps.me are the most popular ones on iOS and Android. I've only used Maps.me but it did OK enough for my purposes. I picked it mainly because the offline option is really good and the offline feature on Google Maps sucked ass by comparison back then. Be prepared to download a couple of gigabytes of maps for the offline functionality so better do that on a Wifi. Maps.me is ad-supported, and it is Russian if that scares you, Karta GPS was developed by a Portuguese company (I think), not sure how they support themselves. You are never going to find a free app like this that does not finance themselves through either ads, selling your data or charging companies for overlaying their store/restaurant/garage/hotel locations onto the OpenStreetMap's map data. That being said, at least they are not Google and will probably not rape your privacy anything as outrageously as Google and Morgan Stanley will. There is a list of mobile Apps on the OpenStreetMap Wiki:
iOS apps: https://wiki.openstreetmap.org...
Android apps: https://wiki.openstreetmap.org...
I've been trying to get rid of Google for years, but gmail and google maps (especially via Waze) are the most valuable things in Google's portfolio. Replacing Google search with Duck Duck Go was painless. But Google's map product is the best one on the market.
Alternatives:
Apple Maps -- not bad really, but the estimates are too conservative, and the routes aren't always optimal, and the traffic is often out of date
HERE Maps -- formerly Nokia HERE, these offer offline navigation. Traffic is optional.I am not sure if it does voice or not.
Are there others? I don't know. I use Waze mostly for the police identification (not that I even drive fast anymore, but I think it's fun to screw the opportunists trying to make money off people who just want to get home).
- Vincit qui patitur.