Google Maps in South Korea: Google removes coordinates from Maps and Earth
Google has pulled coordinates from Maps and Earth to meet its first security requirement from South Korea. Full navigation in the country could follow.
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Dialo· learn languages by speaking
ediviewer· read EDI files like documents
giftdetect· the right gift in minutesGoogle has stripped coordinates from Google Maps and Google Earth, and the reason is South Korea. The company has met the first security requirement set by the country, and that could bring turn-by-turn navigation in Google Maps a step closer.
The change is a concrete one. Coordinates, the exact latitude and longitude values that pin down a spot on the map, are no longer shown in the two services. Removing them was the first condition South Korea attached to Google's request to export map data. Google has now done it.
Will Google Maps navigation work in South Korea?
Possibly soon. According to the report, the step brings navigation in South Korea into reach, but nothing is switched on yet. Whether and when drivers and pedestrians in the country get Google's route guidance depends on what happens next. The source does not say which further conditions remain or how long a decision might take, so those details are left open here.
What does this mean for users?
If you use Google Maps or Earth, you may notice that coordinates are missing for locations in South Korea. Everything else in the apps is described as unchanged in the material available. For travellers and people living in the country, the practical hope is better navigation than the limited experience Google's apps have offered so far.
The case shows how a map is also a matter of national security for some governments. Google is meeting the requirements one at a time, and this is the first it has ticked off.
Apps worth a look
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giftdetect: the right gift in minutesPick who it is for, the occasion and their personality. The search engine reads product descriptions from local shops and ranks what fits. Free, no sign-up.
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