Apple’s maps service ditches Google

At its annual developers conference in San Francisco Apple showed off  next version of iOS 6, the operating system for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch, as well as Mountain Lion, the next version of the Apple Mac operating system.

As expected, iOS 6 includes deep Facebook integration, reflecting chief executive Tim Cook’s recent comments that implied a warmer relationship between Apple and the social network.

Apple iPhone owners, and those who own iPads or the iPod touch, will be able to update their Facebook status from points across the operating system. Apple will also incorporate Facebook ‘likes’ into iTunes and the App Store, allowing people to see which songs and applications their friends like before deciding what to buy.

In contrast, Apple has dealt a blow to Google, whose mapping software will lose pride of place on iPhone users’ handsets. In a move that could threaten satnav manufacturers, Apple’s new mapping system includes turn-by-turn navigation for owners of the iPhone 4S, iPad 2 and new iPad. The new maps are fully compatible with Siri, Apple’s voice controlled ‘personal assistant’. Siri can plan trips and will also answer questions en route, such as the location of the nearest petrol station.

Analysts said the decision to abandon Google Maps, which has provided mapping data for the iPhone since it was introduced in 2007, shows the increasingly fierce rivalry between the two firms. Previously close partners who shared board members, Google is now Apple’s biggest challenger in the smartphone market via its Android operating system.