Nokia Maps Powering Windows 8 Maps, Huge Boost for Nokia?
We’ve known for a while now that Nokia Maps will power all the upcoming Windows Phone 8 devices, replacing Microsoft’s severely lacking Bing maps with what is possibly one of the best services out there. What I personally had never realized was that all of Microsoft’s mapping services are now powered by Nokia, most importantly the new Maps app in Windows 8. Windows 8 comes pre-installed with a default maps app “Maps” just like everything else in Windows 8 is clean, simple and easy to use.
As far as I know Google maps have always been the go-to-choice for pre-planning routes, which is understandable seeing how well it works; but the inclusion of a pre-installed app on the start screen of Windows 8 is sure to give Nokia maps a huge boost. Cutting down on the number of steps required to get your route by ditching the need for a browser, the directions themselves are simple clear and as usual beautiful:
Using Nokia maps as the default in WP8 is a huge boost in itself, but no phone OS can hope to be as popular as any version of Windows, meaning that Windows 8 is probably the largest service Nokia are powering at the current time, pretty cool right?
Category: Applications, Nokia, Windows Phone
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Heyyo, names Ali- Currently a fourth year Dental Student from Chicago; studying in Jordan. I love all sorts of gadgets almost as much as I love my cookies! (Have: Green Nokia N8, Cyan Lumia 800, Black N9, Stormtrooper White Lumia 900, Black 808 PureView, Red Lumia 920). Follow my twitter handle '@AliQudsi' - no pressure. Thanks.Subscribe
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Sites That Link to this Post
- Nokia fornirà i suoi servizi mappe per Windows 8 e Windows 8 RT | October 28, 2012
- Nokia proveerá los mapas de Windows 8 | PoderPDA | October 28, 2012
Yep, I can confirm my Windows 8 installation says (C) 2012 Nokia on the maps.
I keep telling you guys: Location, location, location…
Oh, it also says Maps by NOKIA in the bottom left corner. Big logo.
Bottom left for me says Bing, Nokia is only on bottom right like in the picture.
It is next to the Bing logo.
It seems to appear on a certain zoom level?
Here is a picture of the logo in Windows 8 Maps app:
http://img827.imageshack.us/img827/7051/w8mapsbynokia.jpg
Zoom in closely to Finland and you should see it.
I wonder if that logo is market-dependent.
(Obviously this Powered by Nokia logo stuff was something Elop laid out already on the February 13th Barcelona conference two days after February 11th.)
Yes I can see it… Nokia headquarters has the MS logo on it.
Maps by Nokia logo also appears when zooming in on Moscow, Russia.
I can get the Maps by NOKIA logo (big logo next to BING in lower left corner) to appear when zooming in following countries:
- Estonia
- Finland
- Russia
- Latvia
- Lithuania
- Sweden
- Brazil
I didn’t try all of course – I tried perhaps a dozen countries and half shows the logo and half doesn’t. Sometimes it takes a moment for the logo to appear.
In the UK the logo always seems to disappear. In other countries it won’t disappear if it was already there.
I think there may be licensing questions behind when it appears and when not.
It is certainly distinct that Maps by NOKIA blinks on the lower right corner… I didn’t see any other company logos there even though at times there are additional copyrights for InterAtlas or NASA or whoever.
Most importantly Ulan Bator in Mongolia shows Maps by NOKIA logo.
I disagree with the comment and location strategy. I am not saying location is bad, it’s good. It should not be the strategy. It’s around a billion dollar business, too small and unlikely ever be as big as smart phone business. Nokia should focus on smart phones and making money. Apple and Samsung make about 7 to 8 billion a quarter, Location makes about $100 million.
Location will not save Nokia, not now, not in future. It should be part of smart phone strategy, not the strategy. Location strategy has not been able to pull Nokia out of the hole yet and it will not.
In any case, rather than commenting in great location strategy, I will let Q4 result speak for it. Let’s see how much location bring Nokia out of the hole and how much Lumia puts it in the hole.
It is not THE strategy. It is a PART of the strategy.
I haven’t heard Elop talking anything else these days. Most of the stuff he talks about is location. It’s fine as part of the strategy and it should be. Now if everyone else in WP universe gets the same location thingy and maps, I am sure that’s differentiation in Elops view. I am having bit difficulty understanding how he defines differentiation now and why someone should buy Nokia if he gets the same map and other Nokia services by buying HTC for example.
Well I guess you haven’t read many Elop interviews or e.g. The earnings call transcript.
As for the differentiation, again, the wp8 navigation app is not the same as Nokia drive and mass transit apps are, for example. We’ll see more of how it all unfolds soon enough of course.
Don’t worry. We’ss see soon with Nokia Qe results. Point is how much money Nokia used to make when EFlop became CEO and how much it loses now. How much market share it used tio have vs how much now. Don’t tell me Nokia was going downhill before. I know that. Elop gets millions to lead Nokia. I can do what he is doing.
Oh ok, I thought you said he only talks about location.. my mistake then. No wait.. you did. Oh well.
Yes so funny again /s
Yeah, you are right, so funny, isn’t it? I too love it when folks say something and then something else in the next comment. It’s just cracks me up!
“And it’s true. No other platforms let you build your own app store or music store or book store; Android eschews ecosystem lock-in in favor of something else. Users can download MP3s and applications from Amazon, or books from Barnes & Noble. Google has a totally different model, which Rubin embraces wholeheartedly. He was vocal about it in a way I’d never heard, actually.”
That was quote from the Verge. Now did someone tell us that Google did not allow differentiation.
You don’t have to wait much longer. Q4 2012 you will see how much Nokia makes from location and how much it loses from Lumia/WP. I enjoy seeing WP die.
“I enjoy seeing WP die.”
im not sure mnb is the right place for that kind of fetish thou.
Its not just about location, but the services around your location. Bit like how Google brings you results based on search terms, maps brings results based on location which can be monetized.
Potentially its bigger than Google’s search business, which is why everyone and his cat is doing AR.
BTW, you guys know that if you used online navigation in Drive your phone will be used as a measure of traffic data , which means the more phones with Nokia drive/maps the more accurate data about traffic Nokia drive users will get.
BTW Mynokiablog.com runs very fast on IE10.
IE10 Metro (the flash free version) is AMAZING! I can’t believe I’m saying it but I actually enjoy using IE (was addicted to chrome, but now that feels ugly).
never tried IE in Win8 guess I will give it a looksee
IE10 in win8 is nice…On a laptop the desktop version is still preferable to the metro IE but both are really fast and nice…
I use the desktop version as I use many tabs and to right-click on the screen to choose my tabs that are not adjacent to my current tab is a pita for me but on a tablet ie10 would be pretty neat…
meh i checked it out i still prefer chrome/firefox
No you don’t.
IE10 in metro is very quick.. probably the fastest desktop browser I’ve used. Its even better on a touch screen..
On an unrelated note, has someone actually used W8 on a PC with a mouse?
yes count me one n its not at all bad just needs to get used to the new UI u’ll get more productive than u were on old windows
IT depends of waht’s considered your “normal” use… For me it’s a pain in the ass
Yes.. I have been using it from the consumer preview thru release preview.
I am, running the full retail version, Windows 8 is amazingly fast (IE10 is too!) as longa s you have a proper mouse you shouldn’t have any problems (I have the Microsoft touch mouse which has special gestures for windows 8; navigating it has become second nature now).
I do not know if i share your view on windows 8, privat use is grate, but office work i do not find the metro ui usefull. But perhaps i will get use to it….
Do you guys know how the Microsoft Touch Mouse compares to the Logitech Touch Mouse (T620)?
It looks like Logitech might be more newish or more up to date?
I have the Microsoft touch one, firs to ff the Microsoft supports official gestures for WIndows 8 (something no 3rd part mouse has right now), but the touch mouse from Microsoft is horrible for gaming (no scroll wheel to press down, and you cant press right and left buttons individually).
Cool, thanks for the info!
yep im running Win8 with my mouse
it works very well with a mouse the only problem you’ll have is getting used to how W8 works
This. Win 8 is actually much more efficient than Win 7, as long as you know what you are doing, but still simple for those who are only interested in media-consumption.
Yes, Microsoft Touch Mouse.
(Works just like using a touch pad – even more efficient than Win 7 with a mouse – e.g. 2 finger swipe to move between apps. Very fast).
I think to get the full experience all non touchscreen Win 8 PC’s should be sold with a Touch Mouse.
I hated Win8 since the consumer preview and had uninstalled them previously almost immediately…
However, its now 2 days since I’m running it on my laptop and once you get the hang of it; you’ll enjoy it!
I did an upgrade instead of a fresh install and all my settings and apps (except for Security Essentials+Bluetooth Suite) remained…I’ve transited from XP->Vista & Vista->Win7 and IMO the upgrade option this time round has been the best…
You won’t miss the start menu much and the new start menu take it as the Dashboard you find in MAC and you’ll start to enjoy it…
My surprise of Win8? It kept my Lubuntu boot option and it has remained untouched!
The settings are universal now, and search too. was using the preview for so long and today i just found out you need to search via the side charm.
More hassle than usual i suppose, but if you use the keyboard shortcuts its better.
Works fine with a mouse.. very easy.
I used it with a mouse a Microsoft touch mouse with Windows 8 gestures and all, really fluid and nice
and……next please
do you get paid by the amount of comments or how useless your comments are?
I dont get it..he hates Nokia but he’s always on MNB? Is he a troll by occupation?
He’s the village idiot.
The village is full of idiots LOL, by definition.
He is the Village Chief…
They should name it Nokia Maps instead of just map cause some people just don’t realize or even care/bother about the tiny name or logo at the bottom.
It does not matter. The important thing is that Nokia is going to collect huuuge amount of consumer data because of this, improving the maps on the phone as well.
Two words: licensing revenue.
i like the sound of those 2 words
For what? From all Win8s sold? That would be huge, if its true. Do you have a source?
maybe from 3rd party developers who use nokia maps for their applications
No, unfortunately no source – I just made the (I believe rational assumption that Nokia is not doing it for fee
) that MS pays for it one way or the other. I would guess MS pays them some combination of a fixed and variable fee. The variable part could , i suppose, be tied to home many W8 are sold/installed and or some ad revenue sharing in those applications of it where ads are included in mapping.
“rational Assumption”
Well, MS maps by giving free(or discounted) WP licenses that no one wants and HTC gets free too. HTC goes not mortgage themselves for it. When you get “A third of 3rd ecosystem” there is no rationality, when that ecosystem has 3% market share.
What I try to say is just try to retain Nokia name at the apps so that at first glance people will know IT IS NOKIA MAPS not some other GooGle knock off map or Garmin’s or iMap and it will really help people to realize it is the map that belong to NOKIA… Without having to look at bottom corner seeking for tiny little name or logo there like Ali and Janne did…
How much is that again? The revenue of Maps/Location is about a billion a year. The smart phone business is +100 billion for Apple/Samsung. Focus on making money on smart phones. Location is loose change compared to smart phone and Apple can buy that in a months profit.
Maps used everywhere is good. Not so good when you traded smart phone profit for it. Smart phone is a 100 times bigger business.
Nokia did not trade smartphones for maps/location business. They are two business lines (mutually supportive and overlapping but not completely interdependent). They do need to grow the location business revenue and they have started doing more so by planting BIG seeds on Amazon, Yahoo, W8 and WP8.
We’ll see how much MS pays for location. I guess zero, may be free WP licenses which no body wants. Since WP 8(Nov) and W8 started selling now, We shall see in Q4 results if Nokia gets any money or MS got it all for free. I shall not be surprised to see MS getting all free in a silver platter from Elop.
Did he give it for free to Amazon, Facebook and Yahoo as well? And to all of the car makers?
no. It’s not free for FB, Yahoo or cars. Question is how much money it makes. You kill the cash cow and look for lose change.
Oh ok, so its only free for MS? That’s better then.
Look at it this way.
Nokia powers Bing Maps.
MS powers Nokia.
Nokia has no power.
Bing powers Nokia Maps.
“I’ve got the power!”
Gotta love the early 90s, mate (not sure you were born yet of course
)!
The problem is that it is Microsoft’s own Map app, even though it is powered by Nokia’s mapping tech. The former should have ditched it and relied on the latter’s map app instead, but you still have Local Scout which relies on the former’s map app, unless Nokia allows it to work in their Maps app.
Nokia should have made a blog post on nokia conversations about this on the launch day of windows 8 … it’s still not too late … if they do a official blog post other bloggers will take notice and at the end of the day consumers will get to know about it… and nokia will get the deserving credits
I hate it when they merge Nokia Connects with Conversations. For me Nokia Connects is far more superior or well-known to non-Nokia users out there well before they combine it…
It’s nice that Nokia Maps powers Windows 8, but I think that there’s a phone OS that currently outsells Windows Anything™.
you’ll have to see Win8 sales to know for sure in terms of user base though Windows is still on top
@stylingred
I don’t recall saying anything about user base, but I’m sure that that phone OS user base dwarfs Windows 8/RT’s one.
Android currently outsells windows and is predicted that there will be more android devices that windows devices within a year.
So NO. Google maps potentially still has a wider reach
Nokia maps is on Symbian, WP, and Win8/RT.. that is not a small number.
Nokia Maps should be cross platform and work everywhere. Not tied to an pc operating system.
Nokia should build an platform around maps not being an supplier an pc operating system.
I think they are trying to do that as much as possible. Google being huge on mapping isn’t exactly helping though.
It would be nice if they hook up with Apple and get this on all Apple devices.
Imagine how amazing the quality of data will be if this thing is everywhere.
If you want to make windows 8 even better install start8 I used the trial for about 5 minutes then paid the $5 for it, got me a start button back
Probably not the best place to ask this question but I’ll try anyway.
If you develop apps for WP7 then you can get a (free) license to use Bing maps in your application. How will this work in the move to WP8?
Specifically, if I release a WP7 app which uses Bing maps and which gets automatically migrated to WP8 by MS will it still use Bing maps or Nokia maps or will they end up being the same? What about if I develop a WP* app which uses maps? Will I end up using Bing or Nokia? Note that for some time there has been a Windows 8 Bing license (also free last time I looked).
If this sounds a bit confused on this subject it is because I am.
bing maps uses the data of nokia maps so if an app uses bing maps .. it wud be using the UI of Bing maps but the data of Nokia Maps
I am not positive , but I believe the Bing API’s will now be pointing to the new and improved Nokia data.
I played with Win 8 first time yesterday on an Ideapad Yoga.
It’s pretty nice, guys! I noticed the Nokia name in Maps immediately. They got wise and thought it’s probably smarter to put that there versus Copyright NAVTEQ!
I’m going to get one of those new touch mice and put it on my desktop…
I’m confused about why people are confused about the Start button. Isn’t the entire Start screen one giant start button, or is my mental map wrong?
The yoga is awesome.. I was skeptical about win 8, but once you try it on a touch screen, it all makes perfect sense. It also works well on non-touch pc.. I’ve been using for 3 days, its very nice.
And.. ya, I don’t know why so many people are confused about the start menu, its really simple.
Facebook also uses Nokia maps, so that is another HUGE customer for Nokia.
With Nokia Maps Built into Windows 8, this will be huge BOOST to Microsoft’s ultimate Ecosystem, and will be able to compete over existing Apple and Android Ecosystem, across multiple product line and services !
With availability Nokia Maps in Windows’s Ecosystem, Microsoft will be able to offer must needed location based services across exiting product line (Desktop & Laptop OS) and new Windows Phone 8 based Smartphone and Pad (Surface).
As Windows’s Ecosystem will provide seamless similar feels, looks and interchangeable data across multiple product line from various manufacturer, this HUGE ecosystem should be able to attract majority of Smartphone manufacturer, beside Nokia: Samsung, HTC, ZTE, etc, to produce tip-top smartphone !
Hopefully, Nokia, being “scarifying” Maps Services into Windows, able get some returns from this Ecosystem. Shall this Windows Ecosystem able to proved by hugely popular in coming 1-2 years, Nokia, being key manufacturer and premium partner for Microsoft, should be able to take advantage by superior performance via better hardware expertise over other phone maker.
What ecosystem for Nokia? Maps has an ecosystem worth peanuts compared to having your own OS ecosystem.
Unless you meant the huge boost for MS.
No more Nokia Ecosystem, this is Microsoft Ecosystem.
this is such a big boost in marketing and brand awareness for nokia,
only the m.s. can give that kind of consumer exposure,
Here is a picture of the Maps by NOKIA logo in the Windows 8 built-in Maps app:
This appears when zooming in on certain countries.
Apparently images are blocked.
URL:
http://img827.imageshack.us/img827/7051/w8mapsbynokia.jpg
Certainly biggest business for Nokia Maps so far.
You can’t go bigger than being default maps for Windows, especially when we think of the nature of Windows 8.
I’m writing this on my new Surface tablet, until the Coffee Tab comes out, Windows 8is great. Bing search is cool with all those tabs above the search window. I would find it boring going back to a regular desktop now without Win 8.
Need some Nokia apps on Windows 8 for everyone so we can sneak in phone and accessories advertisements for Nokia.
Bing Travel is nice as is Bing reader. Take a look at the 360 pictures of Dubai…wow.
Impressive.
I was surprised.. they covered a lot of cities.
The nice thing about this is that all the apps that want to use the map API, use the same maps … so Nokia/Microsoft logo in all of them. I just installed Inrix (pretty good app btw) and it pulls from Nokia
putting nokia maps as paid app at google play & apple store is much better boost!
Well , in regards to maps , please understand that Combining maps is the way to go in this situation creating a super map of sort , Some times there’s shadow in some particular area in a map and the best/newest picture will be featured instead of Nokia’s , and sometimes it’s the zoom level to the ground, like Bing maps will probably be better at zooming in the US, not so much in Russia so there Nokia Maps take effect, the same logic gets applied every time Google updates it’s maps.
The question is what Nokia is getting in return? Or is MS just using it for the lousy free WP licenses to Nokia?
MMM… If Nokia fail, NAVTEQ is one of the few thing MS will be buying…
MMM…