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Unsurprising. Another decade-old example: in the pre-iPhone/pre-Android era, when Google Maps was available on BlackBerry, Google created a vast database that a
by thatha7777 6y ago
Unsurprising. Another decade-old example: in the pre-iPhone/pre-Android era, when Google Maps was available on BlackBerry, Google created a vast database that associated cellphone tower locations to addresses, on the (smart) assumption that the “from” location is usually where you are.
They used this as a negotiating tactic for acquisitions they made in the space...
- kevmo314 6y agoHeh, it's like first generation machine learning.
- deleted 6y ago[deleted]
- sukilot 6y agoHow does knowing where you are affect acquisitions? And why wouldn't they know just from talking to the target?
- nitrogen 6y agoI'm not sure, but I think the OP meant that Google pointed out "we already have this DB, so you're really not worth that much to us" in negotiations with location data vendors.
- izacus 6y agoYes, those databases are sadly very common and are fundamental to how location services work on the phone. In most cases there's no good GPS signal in urban areas, so cell tower and wifi locations are the most reliable way of determining the location. These databases are of course very valuable and require constant updates. Pretty much every manufacturer has them - Apple was collecting/uploads this data (cell towers, wifis and your location) in iOS 4 as well: https://www.computerworld.com/article/2507791/iphone-secretly-tracks-user-location--say-researchers.html https://www.computerworld.com/article/2507791/iphone-secretl...