Apple is getting into the map business!

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Thanks to some good detective work on the part of Seth Weintraub from ComputerWorld, it looks like our friends at Apple have spent some of that cash they have sitting around to get themselves into the map business. What’s particularly interesting, and perhaps important/significant, is how this move clearly puts Apple and Google at odds over who should provide mapping software/data on the iPhone, iPod Touch, etc. Unless you’ve been sleeping under a rock for the last couple of years, you know the business of mapping has become massive. Mapping software and the tiles (a.k.a. the maps themselves) not only help people get from point-A to point-B, they are key when it comes to driving local commerce.

Here is some background from CNet (http://bit.ly/apple_placebase_20091001) on the Apple acquisition of Placebase.com.

I don’t think it takes a genius to see that Apple wants Google’s mapping software off the iPhone platform. Correct me if I’m wrong, but aside from Google Maps, does Apple have anything from any other company that comes as part of the base/default application set?

What makes a great Twitter contributor in a corporate environment?

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A good friend (Liya Sharif @lsharif) just posed the following question via Twitter…

What makes a great Twitter contributor in a corporate environment?

I quickly responded with the following…

Someone who shares information other people can actually use; not simply a report of what they are doing or have done.

This exchange got me thinking…

  • Do you agree with my response (keeping in mind I was limited to 140 characters)?
  • Do you have a better answer in under 140 characters?

I’d love to hear what you think.

Survey: Consumers smitten with smartphones

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The CFI Group just released the results of their 2009 Smartphone Satisfaction Survey. The following is a link to the CNet story…

http://bit.ly/cnet_smartphone_survey

Here are some of the highlights:

  • Smartphone users are no longer just reading e-mail or scheduling appointments but also surfing the Web, streaming video and music, downloading games, and snapping pictures. Smartphones are now seen more by consumers as minicomputers than as cell phones.
  • Apple’s iPhone is credited with igniting the growth of smartphones, and it’s the clear leader of the pack. The survey found that the iPhone has the most loyalty and praise among its users, with 92 percent of iPhone owners saying they have the ideal phone. Around 90 percent have recommended the device, while 35 percent said they bought the iPhone based on word-of-mouth advice.
  • The iPhone also is tops in customer satisfaction, ranking 83 on a 100-point scale.
  • The Palm Pre and Android-based phones each scored 77 on the scale, followed by Research In Motion’s Blackberry at 73 and the Palm Treo at 70. The rest of the pack, including phones running Windows Mobile and Symbian, trailed the list with an overall grade of 66.