The big picture: Apple is said to be revisiting a plan to monetize its Maps app through advertising. The company considered baking search ads into Maps years ago but ultimately shelved the idea. The integration would reportedly mirror what Google does with its Maps app, allowing businesses to pay a fee in exchange for being featured more prominently in search results and on the map itself.
Ideally, when searching for a business like a restaurant in a mapping application, you would want the most relevant results – whether based on relevance or proximity – rather than those that simply pay to appear at the top of the list.
According to Bloomberg's well-connected Mark Gurman, Apple has pushed to make ads a bigger part of its business strategy in recent years. Staples like the Stocks app and Apple News now include advertising, and Apple has also prioritized ads with regard to its push into live sports.
Sources told Gurman that during a recent all-hands meeting with the Maps team, Apple executives said monetizing Maps is something they are once again considering. Work on the effort hasn't started and there is no timetable for a consumer rollout, but the possibility certainly exists.
Google already engages in this practice, but they are not the only ones. Others that play in the same or related space including Waze and Yelp also utilize paid search promotion.
It is a bit surprising that Apple is contemplating the move, especially considering its recent performance. Cupertino reported a record holiday quarter with revenue of $124.3 billion despite a small dip in iPhone earnings.
In fact, the services division, which includes things like App Store purchases, subscriptions, AppleCare, and more, reached a new all-time high of $26.3 billion – up from $23.1 billion during the same period a year earlier. Apple CFO Kevan Parekh said the division is accretive to the overall company margin.
Shares in Apple are up 1.27 percent as of writing, trading hands at $244.60.
Image credit: Card Mapr
Apple considers monetizing Maps to strengthen services revenue
