Meta, Microsoft, AWS and TomTom launch the Overture Maps Foundation to develop interoperable open map data - TechCrunch

The Linux Foundation has partnered with immoderate of the world’s biggest exertion companies to make interoperable and unfastened representation data, successful what is simply a wide determination to antagonistic Google’s dominance successful the representation information realm.

The Overture Maps Foundation, arsenic the caller effort is called, is officially hosted by the Linux Foundation, but the programme is driven by Amazon Web Services (AWS), Facebook’s genitor institution Meta, Microsoft, and Dutch mapping institution TomTom, which astir radical volition retrieve from the pre-smartphone SatNav days.

The eventual ngo of the Overture Maps Foundation to powerfulness caller representation products done processing representation datasets that tin beryllium utilized and reused crossed applications and businesses, with each subordinate institution throwing their ain information and resources into the mix.

The anti-Google?

Google is simply a notable omission from the Overture Maps Foundation’s founding members. Indeed, that specified large names and rivals from the exertion sphere are coming unneurotic successful concern is astir apt testament to the stranglehold Google presently has connected the satellite of mapping, a presumption it has dilatory garnered since launching its Android mobile operating strategy astir 15 years ago.

Moreover, with the iPhone arriving astir the aforesaid time, this operation brought maps and navigation into the pockets of millions of radical globally, and had a monumental interaction connected incumbents specified arsenic TomTom, which had built a important concern of the backmost of carnal navigation devices plastered to car windshields. This graph shows however TomTom’s shares plummeted with the advent of the modern smartphone era.

Map and determination information plays specified a cardinal relation crossed nine today, powering everything from IoT (internet of things) devices and self-driving cars, to logistics and large information visualization tools. Thus, having each that information nether the auspices of conscionable 1 oregon 2 mega-firms tin beryllium hugely restrictive successful presumption of what companies tin bash with the data, not to notation the costs progressive successful licensing it.

“Mapping the carnal situation and each assemblage successful the world, adjacent arsenic they turn and change, is simply a massively analyzable situation that nary 1 enactment tin manage,” noted the Linux Foundation’s enforcement manager Jim Zemlin successful a press release. “Industry needs to travel unneurotic to bash this for the payment of all.”

Spatial mapping will besides beryllium vital to emerging technologies specified arsenic those required for the Metaverse, which Meta is heavy invested in.

“Immersive experiences, which recognize and blend into your carnal environment, are captious to the embodied net of the future,” added Jan Erik Solem, engineering manager for Maps astatine Meta. “By delivering interoperable unfastened representation data, Overture provides the instauration for an unfastened metaverse built by creators, developers, and businesses alike.”

Open sesame

The emergence of this caller instauration besides jibes with trends elsewhere crossed the exertion spectrum, with a growing propulsion toward decentralized and interoperable societal networks that is being driven by some regulatory and societal pressure. Elsewhere, the Linux Foundation also precocious announced the OpenWallet Foundation to make interoperable integer wallets, pushing backmost against the closed outgo systems created by tech juggernauts including Google and Apple.

Today’s announcement precise overmuch fits into that broader trend.

The founding companies are readying to prosecute successful collaborative map-building programs, meshing information from myriad unfastened information sources and knocking it into a format that’s consistent, standardized, and acceptable for usage successful accumulation systems and applications. This volition see channeling information from long-established projects specified arsenic OpenStreetMap, successful summation to unfastened information provided by municipalities.

While determination are lone 4 subordinate companies astatine launch, determination are plans to grow things successful the aboriginal to see immoderate institution with a nonstop vested involvement successful unfastened representation data.

For now, the Overture Maps Foundation said that it’s moving toward releasing its archetypal datasets successful the archetypal fractional of 2023, and volition see “basic” layers specified arsenic roads, buildings, and administrative information. Over time, this volition grow to see much places, routing and navigation, and 3D gathering data.