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Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) is the latest to fire a shot in the ongoing battle between two of the biggest blue chips in the tech sector.
At its annual conference for software developers, Apple unveiled plans for a new mobile mapping software that will help it directly compete with Google Maps – the industry standard among online mapping software. Apple also announced plans to expand its Siri voice-search iPhone service for use on its iPads – viewed as an attempt to fend off Google’s fast-growing Android mobile platform.
Apple’s new technology announcements come a week after Google (Nasdaq: GOOG) announced deals to acquire Meebo and Quickoffice. The latter is an application that allows users to open Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint files on their mobile devices. The former is a service that drives user engagement to advertisers and publishers across the web. Google purchased Meebo for $100 million to help attract more users to the company’s Google+ social-networking platform.
If those two acquisitions weren’t evidence enough that Google is ramping up its social engagement, then the company’s record $12.5 billion deal to buy Motorola Mobility – finalized late last month – was. By buying out Motorola Mobility, Google now has access to its popular smartphones and tablets, which analysts believe the company will use as a platform for its Google TV and Android software.
Today Apple countered those moves. And the pseudo-Cold War between two of the biggest blue chips in the U.S. tech sector rages on.
Your move again, Google.