The issue here seems to be that Apple have developed a reputation for producing polished "finished products" that doesn't gel particularly well with rolling out

The issue here seems to be that Apple have developed a reputation for producing polished "finished products" that doesn't gel particularly well with rolling out "perpetual beta" web services. I assume their hands were tied here, and there was no way for them to roll out a "New Maps Beta" for interested/adventurous users while still bundling the Google-powered Maps app as the iOS default (the same way they rolled out Messages beta as an optional download for OS X users while still bundling iChat with the OS). Certainly, the fact that the new Maps isn't billed as a "beta" (as Siri still is) doesn't match the tone of Apple PR's message.