| Story Views | |
| Now: | |
| Last Hour: | |
| Last 24 Hours: | |
| Total: | |
Apple Reportedly In Talks With Foursquare To Enhance Its Maps
There are unconfirmed reports that Apple is having some exploratory talks with the folks over at the location social network, Foursquare. The talks are most probably about a deal which can lead to Foursquare’s user data to be brought over to Apple Maps. I don’t have to tell you why this is happening. The Apple Maps saga which resulted in the firing of two senior Apple employees who were handling the project, has made Apple look at aggressively boosting its Maps product to compete with Google’s mapping and navigation services.
Google, recently released its redesigned Maps app for the iPhone. It is a testament to the bad state of affairs of Apple Maps that Google’s app saw 10 million downloads in the first 48 hours of its release. This is an uncomfortable situation for Apple because the company had recently booted off Google Map’s integration with iOS in favor of Apple Maps. This is probably the first project that they have botched so publicly. Apple will understandably want to repair this situation quickly. To that end, it quickly relieved Scott Forstall and Richard Williamson, both of whom were in charge of the mapping product.
So what does Foursquare have to do with it?
This does not have to do with the mapping bit of things. However, it does have to do with making Apple Maps more engaging and informational to users. Foursquare can be looked at as a layer of human activity on top of the map. This activity includes visits, check-ins, images, reviews etc. That is a lot of content which could aid in enhancing Apple Maps in terms of information. Google has its own check-in feature but it does not equal that of Foursquare, which was one of the front-runners for location based mobile social apps. The data is important to Apple since it not only has to improve the actual maps but also get a one up on Google in the content and information space. Apple is very cash rich and when the time comes, they could go on an acquisition spree and solve all their problems. This is not the pattern that they usually follow but this might just happen.
Image Source | Business Insider
Looking For A Social Media Agency?? – Contact WATConsult – India’s Leading Social Media Agency
WATBlog is India’s Best Blog Of 2009 and is owned and managed by WATMedia Pvt Ltd a Digital Media Company that aims at being the thought leader in the space by Connecting the Web, Advertising and Technology (WAT) Industry in India.
2012-12-18 16:01:16
Source: http://www.watblog.com/2012/12/18/apple-reportedly-in-talks-with-foursquare-to-enhance-its-maps/
Source:
