If you’re planning to travel to South Korea anytime soon, your trip could be a little easier, especially if you’re someone who struggles to get around.
South Korea is planning to reverse a long-standing policy that has rendered Google Maps, the country’s main travel hub, useless. This has been a common complaint of travelers in the country. The East Asian country, which is technically still at war with North Korea, has previously banned map data from being exported outside the country, citing national security concerns. This meant that Koreans were forced to rely on tools from domestic tech firms like Naver and Kakao, which provide similar functionality.
However, there are several caveats to this decision. According to Reuters, which covered the news, Google will have to process map data on locally based servers and will only be allowed to export data that is pre-approved by the government.
The South Korean government will also be able to request revisions to the maps, and Google will be required to set up a prevention framework to deal with emergency security issues. Satellite and aerial images of military locations will also be blurred on Google Earth and Street View.
Google Vice President Chris Turner said his company “looks forward to our continued cooperation with local authorities to bring a fully functional Google Maps to Korea,” but declined to give a firm date for the rollout.
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This move has been met with some criticism. Kyung Hee University geography professor Choi Jin-mu told Reuters he believed that if local tech firms such as Kakao and Naver were forced out of the market, Google could raise prices and become a “monopoly,” making local Korean firms and even the military dependent on Google.
Still, if you’re headed to some of South Korea’s closest neighbors after your trip, such as China—don’t expect Google Maps to be great. Not only is it blocked in China, but it has less complete data than in the West, even if you access it through a VPN. But many local competitors, such as Baidu Maps or Gaode, provide similar functionality.
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I’ve been a PC gamer since you had to manually install games from multiple CD-ROMs. As a reporter, I’m passionate about connecting tech and human lives. I’ve covered everything from crypto scandals to the art world, as well as conspiracy theories, UK politics, and Russia and foreign affairs.
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