A new job listing on Apple's website suggests the company is planning to use crowdsourcing to improve its Apple Maps app for iOS and OS X.
The job listing is for a Maps Community Client Software Engineer and explains in the summary that Apple is "building and extending the Maps application to allow Apple to crowdsource improvements to the Maps experience."
The new approach will integrate Maps into Siri and Passbook in order to expand user feedback and improve the experience which still falls behind when compared to Google Maps.
"You'll also be working on the frameworks and plugins that enable Maps to integrate deeply and seamlessly with parts of the system such as Siri and Passbook, to extend and enhance the feedback experience," says the job posting.
No problem
So far, Apple has used the 'Report a Problem' feature to allow users to submit corrections as the only form of basic crowdsourcing around the app. Updating the UI and architecture of this feature is listed as the primary responsibility of the new position.
Apple hasn't put any deadline on the job posting, so it's difficult to extrapolate just how long the project will take to get going. Perhaps Cupertino will have something big in store for its WWDC event next year.
The popularity of crowdsourcing for real-time information isn't a new idea. Traffic alert app Waze used the strategy to keep people informed of congestion on the road. Google aquired Waze last year and announced it would be incorporating the real time traffic information into Google Maps.
Apple meanwhile hasn't made any public comments on the future of its Apple Maps app. But if you're applying for the position yourself, good luck.
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Via: 9to5Mac
