Apple, Google Maps contract had one year left, report claims
(CBS News) Apple may have jumped the gun on dropping Google Maps and launching its own map app. A recent report by The Verge claims that Apple could have kept Google Maps on its mobile devices for another year.
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Apple released its mobile operating system iOS 6 last week. The new mobile operating system dropped the Google Maps app, which has been included in the iPhone since its initial release in 2007, opting for its own Apple Maps app instead.
Citing "two independent sources familiar with the matter," The Verge says that Apple decided to drop Google Maps just before the Worldwide Developers Conference in June. And that Google is "scrambling" to develop a stand alone Google Maps app for iOS devices.
The report aligns with Google executive chairman Eric Schmidt's thoughts that Apple jumped the gun on its own map app. Schmidt's recent comments to reporters suggest that the decision to spit ways was Apple's.
"We think it would have been better if they had kept ours. But what do I know?" Schmidt recetly told reporters in Japan. "What were we going to do, force them not to change their mind? It's their call."
However, Schmidt's additional comments suggest that Google is not working on a Google Maps app for iOS 6.
"We haven't done anything yet," Schmidt told reporters.
It was previously rumored that Google has submitted a Google Maps app to the App Store, pending Apple's approval. Citing "roundabout sources," The Guardian reported last week that a Google Maps app will appear in time, but there is no official timeline.
