

Eric Schmidt: Google Hasn’t Submitted A Native Google Maps App To Apple (Yet)  - steve_colton
http://techcrunch.com/2012/09/25/eric-schmidt-google-hasnt-submitted-a-native-google-maps-app-to-apple/

======
kumarm
"We think it would have been better if they had kept ours. But what do I
know?" Schmidt told a small group of reporters in Tokyo. "What were we going
to do, force them not to change their mind? It's their call."

Eric Schmidt a real gentleman always. Also this puts to bed the arguments from
Apple cheerleaders suggesting that Google might be the one that removed Maps
from iPhone.

~~~
pilif
Not that it's really relevant for us end-users, but this still says nothing.
It only means that Apple didn't want to continue using Google Maps. It says
nothing about what terms Google was suggesting for continued use. If Google
demanded something totally unreasonable (like a patent agreement legitimizing
Android, or 10 times the money Google was asking before), then Apple didn't
really have a choice to leave - no matter how Eric Schmidt is wording this
now.

In the end the only thing that matters is that we end-users lose greatly
functionality-wise because two large companies behave like children. And us
end users don't know better than finger-pointing and playing along (not that
we have any choice in the matter anyways)

~~~
kumarm
> two large companies behave like children

I only see one child (Apple) here.

~~~
tobylane
Google did something to cause Apple to do this, as well as Apple already
reducing their use of Google, and it's all private. Childish things would
include talking in public.

~~~
rys
How do you know Google did anything?

~~~
flyinRyan
They took it public with this statement, right?

------
sabret00the
Let's not be ridiculous here. Maps isn't run for Android, it's run for Google.
In fact, in terms of hierarchy, they're pretty much on the same level. Google
hasn't submitted a maps app because a/ it needs to build the demand for it and
b/ it's not ready yet. People way overstate the importance of Android to
Google.

~~~
bornhuetter
Google needs Android, to make sure Maps and other Google products are on
phones and tablets. If Android didn't exist, and Apple stopped using Google
products - and Microsoft use Bing - then Google would be in trouble.

~~~
sabret00the
What do you think if worth more to Google? Being on every platform or only
having their own platform? Why do you think Android is so popular now? Or how
Microsoft was able to ride the IBM clones to dominance? You guys think too
small.

~~~
bornhuetter
Being on every platform is better than just their own. But being on no
platform is even worse.

Without Android, Google may have ended up on no platform.

I think the reason why you are annoyed with my comment is perhaps you think
I'm saying Google shouldn't release maps for iOS? I think they should, and
will. I'm just disagreeing with you when you say that Android isn't that
important.

~~~
sabret00the
I wouldn't say annoyed, most disappointed. Google have never thought of
Android as anything other than another avenue to peddle their services.
They're on record stating as such, it's not the other way round. Google were
making Maps for BlackBerry and I'm sure other services will follow. In fact,
I'd be mighty surprised that should WP8 get a decent market share, you won't
see the full GApps package for that. You can't run your products as a shared
entity that epitomises the business. You run your products independently with
the best interests of the business at heart. Going back to the Samsung
example, the exact reason why Samsung can owe Apple a billion and yet still be
making them chips.

~~~
bornhuetter
As a side note - have you noticed that articles about Maps keep disappearing
off the front page? I think they are being removed by the mods.

~~~
sabret00the
Not surprised really. The front page is being flooded with rehashes of the
same story.

------
fpgeek
This Bloomberg report says that he actually didn't comment on whether or not a
Maps app had been submitted:

[http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-09-25/google-s-schmidt-
sa...](http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-09-25/google-s-schmidt-says-up-to-
apple-to-decide-on-maps-app.html)

The Verge also notes that Reuters has softened the tone of their original
report:

[http://theverge.com/2012/9/25/3386598/google-maps-app-
store-...](http://theverge.com/2012/9/25/3386598/google-maps-app-store-eric-
schmidt)

------
epo
Why would Google help Apple out? Lack of decent iOS maps doesn't disadvantage
Google or Android in any way.

~~~
taligent
Why do you think Google even has Maps ? Advertising.

iOS users greatly outnumber Android in mobile internet use hence it would be
stupid of Google to leave money on the table and not build an app.

~~~
__alexs
In some locales, sure, but not in general.

Worldwide: Android beats iOS slightly. [http://gs.statcounter.com/#mobile_os-
ww-monthly-201108-20120...](http://gs.statcounter.com/#mobile_os-ww-
monthly-201108-201208)

Europe: iOS beats Android slightly. [http://gs.statcounter.com/#mobile_os-eu-
monthly-201108-20120...](http://gs.statcounter.com/#mobile_os-eu-
monthly-201108-201208)

North America: iOS beats Android by 10% [http://gs.statcounter.com/#mobile_os-
na-monthly-201108-20120...](http://gs.statcounter.com/#mobile_os-na-
monthly-201108-201208)

South America: Android beats iOS by 28% [http://gs.statcounter.com/#mobile_os-
sa-monthly-201108-20120...](http://gs.statcounter.com/#mobile_os-sa-
monthly-201108-201208)

Asia: Android beats iOS by 10% [http://gs.statcounter.com/#mobile_os-as-
monthly-201108-20120...](http://gs.statcounter.com/#mobile_os-as-
monthly-201108-201208)

~~~
lookingsideways
Do many of the major sites actually use StatCounter though?

Akamai's stats show a very different story -
[http://blog.cloudfour.com/explaining-the-ios-and-android-
mob...](http://blog.cloudfour.com/explaining-the-ios-and-android-mobile-
disparity/)

~~~
BitMastro
Other stats from Akamai show yet another story
[http://www.akamai.com/html/io/io_dataset.html#stat=mobile_br...](http://www.akamai.com/html/io/io_dataset.html#stat=mobile_browser&top=5&type=line&start=20120722&end=20120923&net=m)
The usage is similar, but (my guess) Android users prefer to use a notebook at
home rather than a cellphone

~~~
tehayj
most android people i know use a third party browser that pretends to be a
desktop browser to avoid those crappy mobile sites.

------
nicholassmith
At least this puts to bed the conspiracy theories that Apple is blocking the
GMaps app.

------
ricksta
iOS apps are sandboxed. Maps app used to be fairly integrated with the native
OS when it comes to opening an address in a webpage or email. If Google is to
submit a independent app, some of those features will probably be loss unless
Apple makes an exception for Google.

~~~
objclxt
This is a platform limitation: however, Apple also dropped the ball a little
on this one and if Google had launched a native maps app on day one of iOS 6
they could have had quite a well integrated experience.

Previously, the standard way to open the maps app from within another app on
iOS 6 was to call a '<https://maps.google.com> URL. Rather than re-directing
to Safari, iOS would pick this up and forward the user to the Maps app
instead[1].

For obvious reasons, Apple changed this in iOS 6. Trying to open a
_maps.google.com_ URL now opens Safari. This means the _overwhelming majority_
of apps that used to hot-link directly to the maps app now boot users off to
the Google Maps website (since most apps have not been updated yet to support
all iOS 6 features). It would be very straightforward for Google to adapt this
to forward users back to their own app.

[1]: [http://stackoverflow.com/questions/30058/how-can-i-launch-
th...](http://stackoverflow.com/questions/30058/how-can-i-launch-the-google-
maps-iphone-application-from-within-my-own-native-ap)

------
momma-joe
couldn't you link to the AP article instead of TC's?

~~~
kumarm
You mean this Reuters article? [http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/09/25/us-
google-iphone-i...](http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/09/25/us-google-
iphone-idUSBRE88O07U20120925)

