OSNews

Google is not the world (hope that didn't shatter your world view too much.

Apple just broke a monopoly - why aren't you applauding?

Apple maps are based on open source maps and are more open to third party developers than Google's, why aren't you applauding this triumph of 'open' over 'closed'?

A cynical observer could be fooled into thinking that when terms like 'open versus closed' or 'monopoly' get thrown around in criticism of Apple that actually they are just rhetorical phrases used to tart up cheap Apple hatred and in no way reflect any actually held principles or beliefs.

As I said a cynical observer may well think that but I couldn't possibly comment.

I'd argue it's a bit of a stretch to call Google a mapping monopoly. TeleNav, Tele Atlas and Navteq also have large market shares (Navteq still runs on a lot of non-smartphones, after all).

I couldn't find statistics for the rest of the world, but in China recent results show Google with 17.5% of smartphone market share.

http://english.analysys.com.cn/article.php?aid=139099

Because, so far, what can only be observed is that they broke iOS native mappings user experience?

Plus, AFAIK, the new iOS Plans app is still not open. The API to access is even more closed than the previous one, and while it allow third parties plugins to join their geolocation data as an overlay, the way the maps, is composed, the way the search is done, the way directions are computed, all these are still as closed as they are with Google Maps.
Worse, I'll bet that contrary to Google Maps, only iOS apps will be allow to use it, while everybody can use the Google one, from web site to desktop to embebded widget, whatever the plateform.

Calling the iOS Plans switch a move toward openess is quite ironic. It's many thing, mostly a political move more than anything, but it's far to be an open movement victory.



OpenStreetMaps is only one of the maps source that are reported to be used by Apple's new Plans app, and cleary theu don't use the default rendered tiles but does the rendering themselves. And it's not a *triumph*, otherwise we won't have this thread in the first place.
Did you notice how fast TomTom reacted publicly, stating that they're selling their maps database, but not the one to blame on what is done (or not) from them.

And, IIRC, no satelites images are yet under open licenses. But, wait, you're right, the old monochrome WW2-like satelites photos are under public domain. That's a triumph of "open". Except for the... Not.



1) Apple's new Plans app is still closed as it was before, except for third parties that Apple is happy to take extra data to enrich their currently quite-emptier -than-they-used-to-be maps.

2) Where did you read that Apple made this move *because* Google was closed? Or because they can't stand closed-core-technology anymore (after 5 years of reflexion...) !?

3) Even a cynical observer knows why they did this move, and the customer was never part of the motivations.

4) Last but not least, only a cynical observer can't see the gap between the June presentation of Maps and the actual Maps experience today, and can't think if the move was for a better user expérience Apple"s Q&A will *never* *ever* give the green light. Which is incidentely the proof that the move's motivation is somewhere else, neither the "let's go open-washing" you're trying to push, neither a better user experience
that customers will have to wait longer to get and meanwhile to tolerate a lesser experience than under iOS 5.

And that, every iOS customer can see it, not only the cynical ones.

Wake me up when they start contributing back to OSM.

BTW, I've checked and AFAICT they use OpenStreetMaps *only* in iPhotos app.

So, no, Plans is still not based on open source maps.