AOL, Inc. (NYSE:AOL) MapQuest Inks UI Deal With Map Box As It Gets Ready To Refurbish The Product

AOL, Inc. (NYSE:AOL) has confirmed that it will still hold up its plans to revamp MapQuest, as part of its continued strategies.

The company is in talks to prepare for a $4.4 billion merger with Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ). AOL maintained that it does not plan on separating itself with its content operations once the acquisition is complete.

One of the deals that the company had previously planned was a deal with an upcoming mapping platform firm called Mapbox. The new platform is still in plans to offer MapQuest new rendering for their maps. The company claimed that it had to make the announcement following a tip-off that there was a tweet claiming that they would abandon their initial mapping strategies to adopt the new one from Mapbox.

Mapquest also noted that it would revamp its product that will probably be revealed in the summer. While there is not much to know about the titivated MapQuest, there is a bit of information known about it. Part of the new service will cover rendering only. This has resulted in the slashing of two positions. One of the persons affected was Ty Beltramo, who was the company’s CTO though his departure might have been influenced by personal matters.

MapQuest will continue to acquire raw data from its current providers once the merger is in position. Some of the providers include OpenStreetMap and TomTom. The company plans to maintain its team of developers who will continue to work on the map services. One of the most recently created features allows users to hail roadside assistance when their vehicles breakdown.

According to a report from the Washington Post, MapQuest is currently profitable but stands to perform even better if things continue to go well. Particularly, most of its revenue will be generated from its B2B sales. MapQuest was once on top when it comes to online maps until Google took the clown in 2009. The last few years have particularly been influential because of the development of the mobile device industry.

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John is a special projects and general assignment reporter, noted for breaking several exclusive stories.

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