Apple Maps update could be putting ads on your route very soon

Apple Maps and Google Maps are two of the most popular navigation apps in the world, and a key difference between them is their approach to advertising. While Google displays sponsored content and paid promotions on Google Maps, Apple doesn’t in its Maps service, which makes for a cleaner experience. However, it seems Apple may be on the brink of changing this.

According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, Apple has been exploring the idea of adding more advertising to iOS for several years, and it might soon implement this plan, with Apple Maps as the first affected app. Gurman reports that the company is working on a plan that could see ads integrated into Apple Maps “as early as next year.”

What exactly would this mean for Apple Maps? Essentially, it would allow businesses to pay for better visibility within the app’s search results. For example, a restaurant could pay Apple so that when someone searches for restaurants on Apple Maps, their restaurant pops up first as a promoted place to visit, very similar to what Google Maps does.

This type of advertising isn’t new for Apple

The biggest risk for Apple is user backlash to the ads

Apple’s advertising approach for Apple Maps wouldn’t be the first of its kind at the company. For years, Apple has offered similar advertising on the App Store, where a developer can pay to have their app more prominently featured in the App Store’s search results. So essentially, Apple wants to do the same thing with Apple Maps to grow advertising revenue.

However, it seems Apple’s approach to ads within Apple Maps won’t be exactly the same as the App Store, or even what Google does with ads in Google Maps. Gurman reports that Apple Maps will display ads in a more sophisticated way, with “a better interface than what Google and other companies offer inside of mapping services.” Apple will also reportedly use its AI technology to ensure that how ads pop up is “relevant and useful.”

As Gurman notes, the main risk Apple faces with this move is user backlash, and to me, that seems almost certain. Apple is a company worth trillions of dollars, and adding ads to its Maps service could easily be seen as a mere cash grab with no real benefit to users.

Although I believe the scale of the backlash will largely depend on Apple’s final implementation of this. If the way ads are integrated into Apple Maps isn’t too disruptive to the user experience — which its “better user interface” and use of AI might suggest — then it might not be a big deal. But it’s way too early to know at this point, and we’ll have to wait and see what Apple actually does next year.

Besides the possibility of Apple Maps receiving ads, there are also rumors that Apple TV might soon get ads as well, given some of the recent advertising executives the company has hired (via 9to5Mac). Additionally, Apple recently increased the price of Apple TV from $10 to $13 per month and changed the branding from Apple TV+ to just Apple TV. With the service now starting at $13 a month, many believe this could lead Apple to introduce a cheaper, ad-supported tier, similar to what most other streaming services like Netflix, Disney+, and HBO Max offer.