4 ms·

Would Google try to buy the startup, hire the developers, or just reinvent the wheel in-house?

runn1ng 12y ago
I am pretty sure Seznam.cz won't sell to Google. Also I wouldn't characterize it as a "start-up", it's one of the biggest Czech companies.
- mkcz 12y ago
  True, Seznam.cz was founded in 1996, two years before Google. Try clicking "Vybrat jinou mapu" - more map types available.
zk00006 12y ago
Seznam.cz is far from being a startup.
rplnt 12y ago
It's not a startup. It's older than Google, does basically the same (just local), and has been surpassed by Google (in search) only recently. After Google poured millions into web, radio, outdoor and TV advertisement. Their big advantage is that they are local. The maps (mapy.cz) are superior to Google maps. In what data they provide and in general UX (my opinion). I don't know/use other products.
arrrg 12y ago
This approach is already being used in the wild. Apple’s maps have Flyover which looks to be exactly the same. Check it out,: http://i.imgur.com/o80D3gr.jpg http://i.imgur.com/o80D3gr.jpg Even the artefacts are similar, which is not surprising since both maps were created the same way (by flying over the city from different directions). the only difference seems to be that this Czech company is using UAVs and Apple is using helicopters (they showed an helicopter in their promo video, I’m not sure whether they are always using helicopters). Apple bought the company that made 3D maps like this but I honestly don’t see the need for Google to buy anyone. This seems easy enough to figure out. Also, Google doesn’t seem to want to do this. Stuff like this has been out there in the wild (even before Apple bought the company) for a long time, so they could have easily picked up the idea a long time ago.
RivieraKid 12y ago
They're most definitely not a startup, they're older than Google and do tons of different things - search engine (with more marketshare than Google last time I checked), news, offline maps for Android and iOS, browser for Android, email, etc.

I am pretty sure Seznam.cz won't sell to Google. Also I wouldn't characterize it as a "start-up", it's one of the biggest Czech companies.

mkcz 12y ago
True, Seznam.cz was founded in 1996, two years before Google. Try clicking "Vybrat jinou mapu" - more map types available.

zk00006 12y ago

Seznam.cz is far from being a startup.

rplnt 12y ago

It's not a startup. It's older than Google, does basically the same (just local), and has been surpassed by Google (in search) only recently. After Google poured millions into web, radio, outdoor and TV advertisement. Their big advantage is that they are local. The maps (mapy.cz) are superior to Google maps. In what data they provide and in general UX (my opinion). I don't know/use other products.

arrrg 12y ago

This approach is already being used in the wild. Apple’s maps have Flyover which looks to be exactly the same. Check it out,: http://i.imgur.com/o80D3gr.jpg http://i.imgur.com/o80D3gr.jpg Even the artefacts are similar, which is not surprising since both maps were created the same way (by flying over the city from different directions). the only difference seems to be that this Czech company is using UAVs and Apple is using helicopters (they showed an helicopter in their promo video, I’m not sure whether they are always using helicopters). Apple bought the company that made 3D maps like this but I honestly don’t see the need for Google to buy anyone. This seems easy enough to figure out. Also, Google doesn’t seem to want to do this. Stuff like this has been out there in the wild (even before Apple bought the company) for a long time, so they could have easily picked up the idea a long time ago.

RivieraKid 12y ago

They're most definitely not a startup, they're older than Google and do tons of different things - search engine (with more marketshare than Google last time I checked), news, offline maps for Android and iOS, browser for Android, email, etc.