Street Fight Daily: Apple’s Mystery Mapping Vans, Google’s Other Payment Play

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A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology…

Mystery Solved: Apple Vans Gathering Next-Gen Maps Data, Grabbing Street View Storefronts and 3D images (9to5 Mac)
Three years after Apple launched its own iOS Maps app to replace Google as its iPhone and iPad map provider, the Cupertino company is readying its first major enhancements to the service. Apple has been using the sensor-equipped vans in cities such as Los Angeles, Dallas, and New York since earlier this year.

With New ‘Deep Linking’ Integration, You Can Now Order an Uber via Foursquare (Street Fight)
Local recommendations platform Foursquare is debuting a fresh set of these so-called “deep links,” with an integration through smart-connection platform Button that will allow users that develop intent to visit a nearby venue to seamlessly order an Uber cab to take them there.

Google’s Other Mobile Payments Service: Hands Free at McDonald’s (Wall Street Journal)
A session after announcing Android Pay, Google’s Ads and Commerce chief revealed another mobile payments effort, Hands Free. The phone stays in the pocket or handbag and the cashier presses a button on the store terminal to process the payment, according to Google.

How to Assess Demand for a Hyperlocal Platform (Street Fight)
The greatest idea in the world still won’t lead to profitability for a hyperlocal startup without a community of willing buyers, users, or subscribers. Nearly all successful founders in the local space have had to assess demand for the platforms they created, both before and after launching their businesses.

Dave Morin Sells Path’s Social Networking and Messaging Services to Prevent the Rest of the Path Ship From Sinking (Pando)
Path’s Dave Morin announced that Daum Kakao, the company behind the KakaoTalk messaging platform, has acquired Path and Path Talk. Path is a natural fit for Daum Kakao, given the social network’s popularity in Southeast Asia and its relative lack of traction in the United States and other markets.

Google Maps Breakthrough: Search and Navigation Without a Connection (Search Engine Land)
Google continues to add features and capabilities that keep its maps that much ahead of the competition. Coming out of I/O yesterday Google made a major announcement: Google Maps search and voice guided, turn-by-turn navigation will be available offline.

Interactive Mapping Services Are the Next Hot Acquisition Targets (Skift)
The flurry of M&A and investment activity in the past year around companies whose main proposition is based on the analysis of location data has given some in the industry a sense of déjà vu. The new travel sector and allied companies like Airbnb and Uber are investing big in their mapping capabilities, as that forms the key base layer for them.

Apple Just Gave a Huge Boost to One of the Hottest Startups in Silicon Valley (Business Insider)
Apple began offering same-day delivery for a handful of its products this week — and it’s all made possible thanks to a partnership with Postmates, easily one of the hottest startups coming out of Silicon Valley, which runs a network of couriers to deliver goods locally.

You Don’t Have to Wait for Beacons. How Brands Can Use Mobile Devices to Target Consumers (AdAge)
As consumers spend more time connecting to the internet on a device beyond a traditional laptop or desktop computer, they are creating more signals marketers can use to target and tailor ad messages. Some of those signals are being leveraged via in-store beacons, which can trigger location-specific messaging to drive purchases.

Retailers Account for One-Quarter of Programmatic Spend (eMarketer)
US retailers spend more on digital advertising than any other industry, and they also lead all verticals in programmatic spending. eMarketer estimates that nearly 25% of programmatic digital display ad dollars will be spent by the retail industry this year. Digital display ad spending by US retailers was also more programmatic-heavy than in any other industry.

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