Apple Acquired Mapping Company Placebase. New Maps app soon?

It looks like Google and Apple have been steadily moving from friends to enemies. Google created Android and CloudOS, Apple rejected Google Voice and Google Latitude, Google’s CEO left Apple.

So Back in July Apple stealthily acquired Placebase, a mapping company that provides a service similar to Google Maps, but with more robust customizations and set of APIs, called Pushpin.

The obvious interest Apple would have in the company would be the mapping content and expertise that they are currently relying on Google for in their iPhone maps application. Placebase, however, also offered additional functionality that is not currently available in Google's offerings that Apple could theoretically take advantage of.

Given that Apple wrote the iPhone Maps app themselves, and just used Google for the backend, a switch to Apple Maps might even be transparent to the end user.

Placebase CEO Jaron Waldman LinkedIn profile now listed his position as part of the "Geo Team" at Apple.