How could Google monetise its Maps service?

If you spend any time online, it’s difficult to get away from Google. Even if you’re not using one of the more than 2bn devices that run Android – Google’s smartphone operating system – there’s a good chance you’ll run across the firm next time you send an email, search for a recipe or open up a browser window. More than any other tech company, Google has succeeded in making itself ubiquitous online. For firms that rely on Google to run core products, the search giant has gone from a useful add-on to an irreplaceable piece of infrastructure. Nowhere is that more true than when it comes to mapping. Take Uber: in paperwork released in April, as it geared up for its initial public offering, the ride-hailing app set out its reliance on Google Maps in stark terms. Google Maps is “critical to the functionality of our platform”, the firm wrote. Without Google Maps, it would not function as it does, which is why it shelled out $58m (£45m) between 2016 and 2018 to Google for the privilege of using it. And Uber is not alone. Other firms, such as Rightmove, Airbnb, Yelp and a host of transport and navigation apps rely on Google Maps to provide their core functionality. For firms that rely on Google to run core products, the search giant has gone from a useful add-on to an irreplaceable piece of infrastructure. Nowhere is that more true than with mapping This has always been the plan. In June 2005, five months after Maps was first launched, Google launched a snippet of code called an application program interface (API) that let any developer integrate Google Maps into their own websites and layer their own information over the top. Rather than building their own mapping software, developers were able to plug into what would become the most detailed map on the internet. When the smartphone revolution took hold a few years later, Google quickly parlayed its online dominance on this new platform. Until September 2012, and the release of iOS 6, even the built-in mapping app on iPhones was powered by Google. Even after that, Maps remains the most popular navigation app on smartphones. In April 2018 Google Maps was used by 154.4m people in the US alone. The next most popular navigation app, Waze (also owned by Google), was used by just 25.6m people in the same period. Google’s next move? Cars. From 2021, cars by Renault, Nissan and Mitsubishi will feature media displays powered by Android. For years, automotive firms have opted to build their own mapping systems rather than partner with Google but, as consumers demand more from their in-car displays, the convenience is proving irresistible. But despite its monumental reach, Google Maps is missing the final piece of the puzzle: monetisation. Last year Alphabet – Google’s parent company – earned $138bn in revenue, with most of it coming from search advertising, but so far Google is yet to turn Maps into a cash machine. That could be about to change. In 2018, Google Maps started charging developers to use its API – something that used to be completely free. It also started experimenting with placing adverts against in-app search results and giving companies the option to pay for a more prominent icon on the map itself. Last summer, the app’s voice-based directions started mentioning brand names as waypoints, instructing users to turn left at the Starbucks or right at Walmart. Google has a tightrope to walk. Slip too many ads into Maps and it risks alienating users who enjoy its clean, uncluttered aesthetic. But Alphabet is a listed company with revenue targets to meet, and with Google Maps it’s sitting on an untapped vein of potential advertising income. With such an ecosystem attached to it, every decision Google makes with Maps has the potential to send shock waves through Silicon Valley. Matt Reynolds is tech reporter at Wired Click here to read an interview with geospatial technologist Ed Parsons – the man behind Google Maps, Google Street View and Google Earth