Apple acquires 2 online mapping services firms

(MENAFN) US iPhone maker Apple Inc. has acquired two startup online mapping services firms as it seeks to create a better alternative to Google's navigation system, Reuters reported. The buyout of HopStop and Locationary will give Apple more tools to round out the maps that it embeds in the mobile operating system running its iPhones and iPads. New York-based HopStop provides directions to major transit systems and biking routes, popular features on Google's maps. Locationary, which is based in Toronto, collects and analyzes data to help create more precise maps. Apple relied on Google Inc. for the built-in maps on those devices until switching to its own system last year, which turned into an embarrassment for Apple when iPhone and iPad users discovered the maps sometimes gave faulty directions and misplaced famous landmarks.