Photo: Apple Maps/autoevolution edits
The demise of the Apple Car forced Apple to rethink its automotive strategy, and investing big in Apple Maps and CarPlay seems to be the chosen way to become more relevant in an unexplored world, potentially bringing home the bacon.
Apple has become more committed to improving these two products, albeit the company isn't only trying to develop new features and improve the existing ones.
Apple wants to turn them into money-making machines, and unfortunately for users, the strategy involves a more aggressive advertising push. Increasing the advertising revenue is a priority for Apple in the long term, and Apple watcher Mark Gurman says Apple Maps could be the next product to start displaying ads.
The Cupertino-based tech giant is already working on the underlying software to make this approach happen, with Apple Maps to start showing ads later this year.
It sounds disappointing for diehard Apple Maps users, especially now that the application is catching up with Google Maps, but the iPhone maker wants to make the new experience less intrusive and somewhat useful.
If you've launched the App Store in the last couple of years, you probably noticed that Apple serves ads, allowing developers to pay for their software to show up higher in search results. The same approach will power the Apple Maps advertising strategy, as Apple will allow business owners to pay for their listings to be displayed when local users search for specific keywords.
The best way to understand how ads will work in Apple Maps is to think of a common search for something to eat. If you search for "burgers" in your area, restaurants in proximity paying Apple to be displayed higher in search results for this keyword will be highlighted on the map.
If you think the ad invasion is an opportunity to give up on Apple Maps and switch to Google Maps, you must know that the search giant also displays ads in its mapping service. It's a strategy that Google has been using for several years, so Apple is only following in its footsteps with an approach whose role is to support reaching $10 billion in revenue every year from ads alone.
Meanwhile, Apple Maps is expected to receive several notable improvements this year, including support for custom routes. The new feature could be integrated into iOS 18, which should debut in the fall, as per Apple's typical release calendar. With custom routes, users will be allowed to configure routes on their PCs and transfer the data to their smartphones via an Apple ID. The feature already exists in Google Maps, but Apple wants to improve Apple Maps at a faster cadence now that the Apple Car is no more.
Apple wants to turn them into money-making machines, and unfortunately for users, the strategy involves a more aggressive advertising push. Increasing the advertising revenue is a priority for Apple in the long term, and Apple watcher Mark Gurman says Apple Maps could be the next product to start displaying ads.
The Cupertino-based tech giant is already working on the underlying software to make this approach happen, with Apple Maps to start showing ads later this year.
It sounds disappointing for diehard Apple Maps users, especially now that the application is catching up with Google Maps, but the iPhone maker wants to make the new experience less intrusive and somewhat useful.
If you've launched the App Store in the last couple of years, you probably noticed that Apple serves ads, allowing developers to pay for their software to show up higher in search results. The same approach will power the Apple Maps advertising strategy, as Apple will allow business owners to pay for their listings to be displayed when local users search for specific keywords.
The best way to understand how ads will work in Apple Maps is to think of a common search for something to eat. If you search for "burgers" in your area, restaurants in proximity paying Apple to be displayed higher in search results for this keyword will be highlighted on the map.
If you think the ad invasion is an opportunity to give up on Apple Maps and switch to Google Maps, you must know that the search giant also displays ads in its mapping service. It's a strategy that Google has been using for several years, so Apple is only following in its footsteps with an approach whose role is to support reaching $10 billion in revenue every year from ads alone.
Meanwhile, Apple Maps is expected to receive several notable improvements this year, including support for custom routes. The new feature could be integrated into iOS 18, which should debut in the fall, as per Apple's typical release calendar. With custom routes, users will be allowed to configure routes on their PCs and transfer the data to their smartphones via an Apple ID. The feature already exists in Google Maps, but Apple wants to improve Apple Maps at a faster cadence now that the Apple Car is no more.
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