Google set to map the world -- and push out GPS makers as a result?

Posted Nov 25th 2009 5:00PM by Brian White
Filed under: Rumors, Products and Services, Google (GOOG)

Google (GOOG) changed the game of many global GPS appliance makers this month by announcing a completely free and quite capable GPS product as part of the Motorola Droid handset announced and now being sold by Verizon Wireless.

In what seems to be the norm for Google, it is once again disrupting an entire market by giving something away for free that's both competitive and capable. TomTom and Garmin saw their share prices plummet upon Google's announcement, and rightfully so.

But Google is just getting started. The enhancement to the Android mobile operating system to include a full GPS navigation solution was just for the U.S. What if Google wanted to bring global navigation to a free product instead of just a country or continent?

If Google really had its head buried in European mapping data, this should scare every single GPS device manufacturer to its core. Yes, there are many more dedicated GPS devices than Google Android handsets in the world right now, but that could change pretty fast as Android-powered devices start popping up on every carrier throughout the world. 2009 was already a banner year for the Google operating system product, with a ton of introductions just in the last few months alone.

One company -- AND from The Netherlands -- has already partnered with Google to provide it with detailed map data for much of Europe. While the competition won't join Google's Maps Navigation product as data suppliers in order to safeguard their own GPS-based businesses, it doesn't matter. Google's creed to provide all information to anyone in the world on any device should say something: that it will provide GPS maps to anyone on any Android device it can. As fast as it can. Period.

Tags: GOOG, Google, Google GPS, Google Maps, GPS, Inc., inthenews, Motorola Droid

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

11-25-2009 @ 7:18PM

al coholic said...

What's next? A free defense system for the Department of Defense and a name change to Skynet?

11-26-2009 @ 10:41AM

cabo79 said...

If anyone is looking at thos from google an Android netbook would be great. GPS and communication. It would go with me everywhere.

11-27-2009 @ 12:24AM

BSreader said...

I own an Android headset and love it, but I wish to point out one "problem" with Google Maps Navigation. It does not currently allow you to cache your route. So the second you drop out of network range whether wifi or cellular, you loose your mapping. You can still at that point have the text and reading, but any visual map presence is lost.
From this same standpoint if you are outside of wifi or cellular range you cannot calculate a new route or lookup new directions. This is one thing which will keep current GPS companies in the loop. That is until Google comes up with a decent offline solution.

11-27-2009 @ 2:05PM

Jalle said...

It's already happening. Take a look at Spain in Google Maps, it's almost entirely mapped with street view. I've read that we are at 75% of mapped roads. Navigation can't take much longer to arrive here.

11-27-2009 @ 2:42PM

dwayne said...

good some things should be free! good for google not to be all about getting money and caring! thank you google maybe u will set an example to the rest of the companies in the united states and the world!!!!