Bill Gates announced the launch of MSN’s Virtual Earth mapping tool yesterday in a continuing effort to expand its MSN product line as part of the ongoing battle with Yahoo and Google to capture the search engine services market.
MSN Prepares To Search The Globe
Editor’s Note: Apparently, search engine map services are becoming all the rage. Especially those that offer visual representations. Since Google Maps integrated the Keyhole satellite technology, it seems as if competitors are stumbling over themselves to introduce a similar product. What are your thoughts about this increased interest in the visual map world? Discuss at WebProWorld.
Gates made the announcement at the Wall Street Journal conference in Carlsbad, California and had a full visual presentation for the media to view. Microsoft showed off the wonderful images of places all over the country as Gates’ air corps of high quality digital photographry planes sent back pictures to help people look over their city with a literal bird’s eye view. Now we know the what U.S. Air Force did with all their SR71 Blackbirds.
Actually, Microsoft covers 15 major cities with high quality photos from Pictometry’s fleet of small planes taken at a 45-degree angle. They then overlay the photos onto satellite imagery and allows people to see clear photos of whatever they happen to be looking for with highly detailed maps to get them there. Pictometry Inc. is used primarily by government organizations for the photos so one knows the quality of the photography will be first rate.
MSN’s Virtual Earth promises much innovation in the mapping market, although Gates suggested during the conference, “There’s going to be a lot of competition in the mapping area.”
What Others Are Doing:
MapQuest, a division of AOL, took a crack at the aerial mapping market a few years ago but after a decent start, usage dropped off AOL’s Brian Hoyt told the Wall Street Journal although Mr. Hoyt suggested MapQuest may revisit the 3-D imagery idea very soon. MapQuest was one of the first players in the map market is still popular today.
Amazon started a new search engine called A9 last at the beginning of 2005. The Block View, as they call it, brings up matching photos when one begins looking for things, particularly cities. A9 utlizes photo trucks equipped with GPS for their imagery with the notion of having the user feel like they were riding with them in the truck. When typing in the home office city of Lexington, Kentucky, no Ashley Judd photos came up though.
Right now, Google offers a free mapping service called Google Maps, which gives aerial views with search results like the MSN stuff and while Google has fast image scrolling, MSN offers more detail by allowing people to look at storefronts and other items with great resolution. The toughest problem for MSN and others to deal with is Google’s acquisition of Keyhole Inc. last fall. Keyhole uses aerial photos and satellite imagery for their maps, which are even more detailed and require a $30 a year service fee and some software to utilize. Keyhole even fills in some holes with NASA images.
Yahoo offers a decent system but it lacks the quality photography and the detail of the satellite imagery to work with. One can see where restaurants and gas stations are located but it’s like any standard map. With the new mapping systems, you REALLY get to see where they are.
Yahoo’s system isn’t bad but it doesn’t give the detail “You can really establish that what-is-it-like-there kind of feeling,” Stephen Lawler, general manager of Microsoft’s MapPoint business.said. “This is a game-changing kind of imagery for the Internet and for this kind of search experience we’re trying to create.”
One of the major concerns with all this groovy new mapping technology and satellite imaging and high fidelity photography is privacy. With many technological enterprises, privacy protection seems to be an issue. Now instead of employees committing identity theft at the local bank, pictures of one walking with children or one’s girlfriend will be out there. It’s something for real consideration.
John Stith is a staff writer for Murdok covering technology and business.
