Google confirmed earlier today that their purchase of Waze has completed. Essentially, as many predicted, Waze will operate independently while supplying Google Maps updated traffic information. So, not much is going to change except for the incorporation of traffic features into Google’s services.
Of course, the Waze app will also receive some new Google search functions and features thus allowing both companies to benefit from the recent acquisition.
As for what Google has to say about the whole thing:
We’ve all been there: stuck in traffic, frustrated that you chose the wrong route on the drive to work. But imagine if you could see real-time traffic updates from friends and fellow travelers ahead of you, calling out “fender bender…totally stuck in left lane!” and showing faster routes that others are taking.
To help you outsmart traffic, today we’re excited to announce we’ve closed the acquisition of Waze. This fast-growing community of traffic-obsessed drivers is working together to find the best routes from home to work, every day.
The Waze product development team will remain in Israel and operate separately for now. We’re excited about the prospect of enhancing Google Maps with some of the traffic update features provided by Waze and enhancing Waze with Google’s search capabilities.
We’ll also work closely with the vibrant Waze community, who are the DNA of this app, to ensure they have what’s needed to grow and prosper.
The Waze community and its dedicated team have created a great source of timely road corrections and updates. We welcome them to Google and look forward to working with them in our ongoing effort to make a comprehensive, accurate and useful map of the world.
To translate everything, Android users should expect to see realtime traffic support on their devices powered by Google and Waze. Imagine, Google Now will actually be able to provide you with realtime traffic reports.
What do you think of all this news? Are you excited to see traffic support incorporated into Google Maps? Have you been using Waze already for some time? Are you upset about the acquisition? Let us know what you think.
Source: Google