Apple will introduce advertisements to Apple Maps next year, according to a new report.
The Cupertino company is planning to increase advertisements across iOS to increase revenues, and Apple Maps could be the first platform to feel the change. According to a new report, the company has begun working on ways to monetize the platform and will start showing ads on Maps as soon as next year.
According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, the company is “already underway to launch search ads in the Apple Maps app,” with engineers looking for ways to incorporate advertisements without being too instrusive. The company expects the change to come into effect “sometime next year”.
It’s unlikely that Apple will add banner ads to the Apple Maps app, but instead use search result-based ads similar to how Google runs ads. Companies will be able to pay to have their location featured at the top of the page based on a number of factors like location and keywords, and ads would need to be labelled.
The news comes at a time when Apple is reportedly looking to increase ad revenue from $4 billion to “double digits” in the coming years. Other apps are also expected to see ads introduced, such as Apple Podcasts.
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