Apple on maps inaccuracies: 'This is no one's issue but ours'
According to a new report, Apple is shouldering the blame for any inaccuracies with its new maps app and says more than 99 percent of the data is solid.
Apple is seemingly taking more ownership over criticism that its new mapping software in iOS 6 is less accurate than its predecessor.
"We own this; we manage the vendors. This is no one's issue but ours," an unnamed Apple executive tells The New York Times today, which adds that the company has promises to "pour as much time and manpower into repairing Maps as it takes."
In a column about the feature's accuracy, The Times adds that "well over 99 percent" of the feature's data set is accurate.
The admissions come on the heels of a statement the company put out last week that read more like a thank-you note to critics than an acknowledgment that there were flaws with the product:
Customers around the world are upgrading to iOS 6 with over 200 new features including Apple Maps, our first map service. We are excited to offer this service with innovative new features like Flyover and Siri integration, and free turn by turn navigation. We launched this new map service knowing that it is a major initiative and we are just getting started with it. We are continuously improving it, and as Maps is a cloud-based solution, the more people use it, the better it will get. We're also working with developers to integrate some of the amazing transit apps in the App Store into iOS Maps. We appreciate all of the customer feedback and are working hard to make the customer experience even better.
Apple debuted its own maps technology at its annual developers conference in June and shipped it to users as part of iOS 6 last week. While the on-stage demos were quite impressive, many users have found the newer version of the software, which uses various Apple and third-party mapping data, to be inaccurate when compared with offerings from other navigation providers, including Google, which is rumored to be working on its own replacement app.
In the meantime, The Times notes that Google intends to add its Street View feature to the browser-based version of its maps site in about two weeks, giving iPhone users a way to see street level imagery without downloading or paying for a third-party Street View app.
CNET has reached out to Apple for more information and will update this post when we know more.
