So how does this relate to today's announcement at Google’s LatLong blog for Google MapMaker? Is it good or bad for OSM ...? While OSM is an "open collaboration between people all around the world that are trying to solve the problem of outdated and expensive maps for GPS systems" (quote), Google Map Maker gets bad welcome from the OpenGeoData blog "a kind of faux OpenStreetMap where they own all the data".
Adding some more:
"If you contribute to Google MapMaker, you are contributing to one single map view that looks how Google wants it to look. If you contribute to OpenStreetMap, you are contributing to a myriad of possibilities … most not even thought of yet."
Sjors Provoost gets speculative for future options:
- Worst case: Google does not collaborate and we’ll have duplicate effort, which is not a problem because there is an astounding amount of disposable man power available on the planet.
- Best case: Google does collaborate and the OpenStreetMap project will be finished in a year or so.
Nevertheless - obviously Google (Maps) does have licence contracts with Navteq and Tele Atlas that simply hinder them from expanding inbound data with user generated map changes.
Why else would you bite hands that feed you?
