Apple has officially kicked off the advertising within Apple Mapsthus respecting the time window announced in recent months for the debut in United States and Canada. The distribution began in the last few days and will continue gradually over the next few weeks, until it reaches all interested users.
The ads may appear at two different times while using the app. The The first concerns the screen shown before carrying out a search: in the section dedicated to suggested places there may be sponsored activities. The second moment is instead subsequent to the researchwhen ads can be inserted among the results if considered relevant.
From a graphic point of view, the advertisements will be very similar to the normal business cards present on Maps. To distinguish them from organic adverts there will be a small blue mark with the words “To“. In this way Apple intends to make the sponsored nature of the results recognizable without radically changing the appearance of the interface.
Apple Maps and advertising: privacy and activity
Apple also points out the importance of privacy in managing advertising on Maps. According to what was communicated by the company, the user’s location and the advertisements viewed or interacted with are not associated with his Apple Accounts. Personal data remains on the device, and Apple says it does not collect or store it for this purpose.
The company also claims that such information is not shared with companies or third parties. The management of ads should therefore follow the same privacy-oriented approach already adopted by Apple for the other advertising activities of its services.
For companies interested in promoting their activities on Apple Maps, a promotional offer dedicated to booking ads is already available. The rollout, currently limited to the United States and Canada, is expected to continue in the coming weeks. The introduction of advertising thus represents a new evolution for Apple Mapswhich expands its monetization model while maintaining, according to Apple, current privacy guarantees.
