Google still wants Apple to use its maps, Eric Schmidt says
The Google chairman doesn't specify whether the two companies are still in talks but says it would be easy for Apple to shift to making Google Maps the default navigation tool for iOS.
Schmidt, speaking today during an AllThingsD mobile conference, declined to say why Apple decided to go with its own mapping system rather than working with Google as it had in the past. But he said his company is still pushing Apple to use Google Maps as the primary navigation tool on iOS.
"We would still really like them to use our maps," Schmidt said. "It would be easy for them to take the app in the store and put it as their basic one."Schmidt didn't specify whether talks are ongoing.
Apple and Google used to partner closely, but the relationship has frayed as Android vies with iOS for smartphone and tablet market share, and the companies accuse each other of stealing designs. In response to the growing tension, Apple decided to package its own mapping app with iOS 6 and the iPhone 5 rather than rely on Google's long-used program. That decision faced a lot of problems, with Apple Maps misnaming cities, misplacing landmarks, and excluding mass transit directions.
Google ultimately released a mapping application for iOS, but Apple's homegrown Maps remains default on the iPhone.