Microsoft Wants You to Know…Bing Maps Now Using Nokia Backend for Traffic and Geocoding

Building on the existing strategic partnership between Microsoft and Nokia, today we’re announcing that Bing Maps is now using Nokia backend services for Traffic and Geocoding. With the goal of helping get places faster and get more done, here are the key things Nokia services will do for Bing Maps:

• Bing Maps will now offer Nokia-powered traffic results in 24 countries.
• Improved and expanded traffic information in the US, adding traffic fo side streets in addition to freeways.
• Bing Maps will begin using Nokia geocoding countries, offering improved routing and directions.

- Microsoft PR which sends you to this blog post

Groupon Responds to Congress and other LBS News

Groupon general counsel David Schellhase said the company is developing technology that will track customers' location, even if they don't have a Groupon app open on their phones, according to an August 10 letter to the co-chairmen of the House Bi-Partisan Privacy Caucus: Joe Barton, a Texas Republican, and Edward Markey, a Massachusetts Democrat.

Why are is the company building that technology? Because its what customers want. Further, says the company, it will require explicit "opt-in" which please Rep Markey.

- Reuters

Foursquare now lets you check in to events - games, concerts, movies... I for one am finding checking in way off the radar of late. Oh, and presdient Obama is now on Foursquare (another indication it's "out"?)

- GigaOm

So, now that checking in is out (at least in my book) the Bing Team has an app for setting up a meetup: "We're in." It allows you to make the invitation to a group, then track everyone via status updates as they head to it (or bail out). For now it's a Windows Phone app and website, but the plan is to make it avaiable on other platforms. 

- Washington Post, Bing Blog

Update: Microsoft Tidbits (Bing Maps Goes?)

Some other coverage:

Nokia's press release addressed management changes:

NAVTEQ, an integral part of Nokia's location and advertising business, will be headed by Larry Kaplan, and continue as a separate reporting entity. (emphasis theirs)

ZDnet: Interleaving Nokia and Microsoft mapping services

But there are some (pardon me for saying it) synergies that could make this a great way forward for both companies. And one of the big opportunities is integrating the Navteq/Ovi maps service with Bing Maps - something that Bing is uniquely placed to handle.

Light Reading: Nokia to Cut Jobs, Stay in Finland

At the end of 2010, Nokia employed 132427 staff, of which 63927 were Nokia Siemens Networks employees and 5452 Navteq Corp. (NYSE: NVT) employees.

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Today's MS PR shares news key to geospatial:

Nokia Maps would be a core part of Microsoft’s mapping services. For example, Maps would be integrated with Microsoft’s Bing search engine and adCenter advertising platform to form a unique local search and advertising experience.

This week Nokia announced it would take on Windows 7 as its core OS for mobile phones. There were other hints about mapping in the press event, too per those who covered it.

"Nokia will use Bing for its search services. Microsoft will continue, and expand use of Navteq mapping services." (LiveSide)

"Microsoft also gets its hands on Nokia’s Ovi/NAVTEQ mapping assets. Given the number of times this was mentioned at today’s live event, I think that this is what Microsoft wanted more than anything. No word on how this will fit into the WP ecosystem - will the technology be licensed to other handset OEMs?" (ZDnet)

- press release

Microsoft announced spatial search in Bing's API. "Bing Spatial Data Services, [adds] next generation spatial search to the Bing API offering. This release offers the benefits of cloud hosting and distributed computing, allowing customers to upload their data to our servers and perform spatial queries under the umbrella of their existing Bing Maps License."

- Bing Maps Blog

Microsoft announced Thursday Bing will now tailor search results based on physical location among other enhancement to the search framework.

- Bing Blog