Apple is currently more serious about its online mapping and it’s expected that the company might unveil its map at WWDC event next week. Surprisingly, map services on the mobile devices are now determining the business of the company and it’s true. That’s why, Apple has put its all afford to acquire numbers of  mapping companies around the world for the last few years. Undoubtedly, Google has been dominating in online mapping services with ‘Google Maps’, but recent endeavors of Apple have threaten the search engine giant to do something different in order to contend its biggest rivals in the mobile segment.
At the beginning of March of this year, Apple shifted to OpenStreetMap from Google map for its iOS devices across the world. It’s not prudent to take OpenStreetMap very lightly. The reason is quite obvious, first, it had nearly 560,000 registered individuals in March of this year, and second, Apple has decided to go through with OpenStreetMap. Here, the main intention of Apple to create a new photo management apps for iOS devices with OpenStreetMap, that’s why, it has damped ‘Google Map’.
According to a recent report, Google is going to organize an event next week to elaborate its “next dimension of Google Maps” project. However, Apple has also scheduled to host an event related to its own mapping products for iOS platform at WWDC.
Presently, Google is attempting to expand more local business search through its Maps app, hence, it has integrated more number of features in its Map services. However, Google has molded its indoor maps–the new indoor map has comprised floor plans and inferior views.
Indeed, there’s a fierce competition between Apple and Google. An enmity between both the tech-giants are continuously increasing due to intense competition in mobile era. Google’s Android has clinched majority of Apple’s iOS market share around the world, and now, every second smartphone purchase in the world is powered by Android. A recent acquisition of Motorola Mobility by Google has intensified the competitions among hardware manufactures.
The difference with OpenStreetMap.org, is that it’s a volunteer driven not-for-profit collaboration to create open licensed (completely free and open) map data. As interest in the project grows, people are mapping out their neighbourhoods and each chipping in a little effort towards to goal of a free map of the world. This has reached the stage now where it can start to eliminate map data as a competitive and monopolistic advantage that large companies can have. So although google and apple are battling it out, OpenStreetMap is also allowing small companies and bedroom coders to create innovative map products using the data which is free and open at the level of underlying vectors (Google offers a free *view* of the map. OpenStreetMap offers all the data you’d need to create your own view of the map)
We (you, me, everyone) Â still have some work to do, to get good map coverage everywhere. Â Did you try contributing to the map yet?