JOIN USSearch engine giant Google has launched its Indoor Maps in India for public places to assist users in finding their way inside unfamiliar locations like shopping malls.
The service, available as part of Google Maps, is already available in countries like the US, Japan, Singapore, Hong Kong and the Netherlands. It will enable browsers to access detailed floor plans for 75 popular indoor venues in India on Google Maps with a few easy swipes, Google officials said.
“Using indoor maps, users will find it easy to locate stores, especially in an unfamiliar shopping mall or when they plan a visit to a museum like Salar Jung in Hyderabad. With Indoor Google Maps in India, people can access detailed floor plans for 75 popular indoor venues with a few easy swipes,” Google India Director and Product Manager (Maps) Suren Ruhela said.
He said detailed floor plans will appear to guide a user opens the Google Maps app on iOS and Android, and zooms in on a building where indoor map data is available.
The service will be available free to Android and iOS users.
In Bangalore, Google’s Indoor Maps will initially be available at locations like Gopalan Arcade Mall, Gopalan Innovation Mall, Inorbit Mall, The Forum and UB City
“We’ve worked with 75 partners across 22 cities in India to bring indoor maps,” Ruhela said.
Apart from the metros, Indoor Maps will cover locations in cities like Bhopal, Coimbatore, Chandigarh, Dehradun, Jaipur and Kochi.
Reports have indicated that Google has been experimenting worldwide with crowdsourcing indoor maps. This will allow allow business owners to upload a floor plan of their property then map local Wi-Fi signals themselves using an app for Android smartphones.