Upon further investigation, it became eminently clear that Apple had lifted the maps directly out of OpenStreetMap.
Other efforts - such as UK-based OpenStreetMap and Israel's Waze are seeking to harness crowd-sourced data to offer their own products.
BBC: Google Maps revamp promotes ads and personalises details
Such is the case with the collaborative mapping project OpenStreetMap (OSM).
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Central to ForeverMap 2 is the OpenStreetMap data which powers the app.
ENGADGET: Skobbler brings maps to Nook Tablet, Color with ForeverMap 2
But Several bloggers quickly noticed that the maps bore a striking similarity to OpenStreetMap, an open-source map service with over 400, 000 volunteer contributors worldwide.
OpenStreetMap itself has been much more polite about the whole thing.
GeOS is a one-of-a-kind "operating system" for commercial use of OpenStreetMap, making use of the crowdsourced data intuitive, affordable and secure for developers to build services with it.
ENGADGET: Skobbler brings maps to Nook Tablet, Color with ForeverMap 2
We've combined the most sophisticated map engine in the market with OpenStreetMap's vast dataset, and have brought a next-generation map to NOOK that features unparalleled performance and superior visuals.
ENGADGET: Skobbler brings maps to Nook Tablet, Color with ForeverMap 2
In June, skobbler announced the beta release of GeOS, a new access technology platform that allows app developers and web service providers easy, yet powerful implementation of OpenStreetMap data into their products.
ENGADGET: Skobbler brings maps to Nook Tablet, Color with ForeverMap 2
Enter Leikr: a Gorilla Glass beast with a 2-inch, 320 x 240 display that can throw out a wide range of endurance stats simultaneously or switch to a color navigation mode using up to 8GB-worth of onboard OpenStreetMap data.
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Crowd-sourced cartography is getting hot, too: in late May the company Telenav, which supplies maps to carmakers, said it would switch to OpenStreetMap, a collaborative project to create a free editable world map, from its previous suppliers, which had included Nokia and TomTom.
Much like Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap is a collaborative, crowdsourced and global project of over 650, 000 contributors dedicated to revolutionizing digital maps by creating a free, editable and interactive map of the world using data from satellites, GPS logs, local knowledge, and other sources of geographic information.
ENGADGET: Skobbler brings maps to Nook Tablet, Color with ForeverMap 2
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