Microsoft has updated its MapPoint Web Service, which allows developers to "location-enable" Web applications—to generate maps and provide directions, for example—without having to purchase an expensive geographic information system (GIS) and maintain databases of cartographic and demographic data. Version 3.5 includes more data, provides greater geographic coverage, and supports mobile devices. However, it remains a service designed for corporate and commercial Web applications; its security, pricing, and licensing models remain unchanged, which effectively prevents its use by client applications, including Microsoft’s own MapPoint 2004 desktop product.

MapPoint Web Service Supports Web Applications

Unlike the MapPoint 2004 desktop application used by end users or called by other desktop applications, the MapPoint Web Service (MPWS) is designed to be used by private Web applications hosted by organizations or public Web sites. In exchange for per-user or per-transaction fees, MPWS lets developers quickly integrate location-based services into their applications and business processes without having to acquire and maintain GIS data. Microsoft keeps MPWS updated with cartographic data from Geographic Data Technology (GDT) and Navigation Technologies (NavTech), and MPWS exposes Web service APIs that can render maps, provide driving directions, and retrieve various points of interest (such as nearest airports) and geographic attributes (such as postal codes), given an address or location coordinates.

Since its launch in 2002 (under the name MapPoint .NET), MPWS has found use mainly in the following scenarios:

Map locators. Retail and consumer service Web sites can use MPWS to allow customers to find the nearest instance of a particular physical facility (a store or an office, for example) and provide driving directions to it.

Fleet tracking. Corporations can use MPWS in conjunction with global positioning system (GPS) technologies to track and efficiently route fleet vehicles and mobile service personnel.

Online travel agencies, such as Expedia, use MPWS to provide directions to travelers and locate nearby airports, hotels, and car rental agencies.

Call centers and CRM applications can use MPWS to route calls to the proper salesperson, correlate problems to specific geographies, and assign sales to geographic territories.

E-commerce applications can use MPWS for tasks such as checking addresses for errors or determining the correct tax rate based on the customer’s address. MPWS has "disambiguation" technology that automatically helps resolve common misspellings or nonstandard formats.

What’s New?

MPWS Version 3.5 is a minor update that contains only modest enhancements, such as the following:

Expanded geographic coverage. Coverage of parts of Brazil has been added, and Microsoft has improved mapping detail in 7 of the 21 European countries covered by MPWS.

New map formats. MPWS can produce maps formatted especially for the small screens on Windows Mobile Pocket PCs and Smartphones, which enables organizations to build location-enabled applications for handheld devices with wireless access to the Internet.

Enhanced Find API. The MPWS Find API can now retrieve points of interest (POIs) along a route. Previous versions of MPWS could search for POIs only within a physical radius or drive-time radius around a point. MPWS now includes more than 15 million business listings and landmarks, such as airports, restaurants, hotels, and ATMs.

Improved user interface. Even though Web services have no user interface, Microsoft hosts a customer service Web site that enables MPWS customers to manage their account information and custom POI data, such as store locations. This interface has been improved and now includes wizards that make it easier for customers to perform routine tasks. The MPWS also includes a Web Service API for customers to automatically upload custom POI data directly from their private applications and corporate databases.

Basic Model Unchanged

The basic architectural and business models of the MapPoint Web service have not changed, even thought Microsoft has folded in technology that it acquired with mapping vendor Vicinity in 2002. Pricing and licensing remain the same: MPWS can only bill its fees to organizations (e.g., corporations or government agencies), not to individual users. Furthermore, access to the service still depends on using a single account and password for the customer’s organization rather than on individual end-user accounts. Consequently, MPWS cannot be used to location-enable client-side applications, such as a mobile GPS-based "moving map" application. This includes Microsoft’s MapPoint 2004 desktop product, which still cannot refresh its locally stored database from the MPWS. That in turn means that MapPoint 2004 users must upgrade to the next release just to refresh their local database with the changes to its cartographic and demographic data.

Resources

For additional background on the MapPoint Web Services’ features, pricing, and licensing see "MapPoint .NET Shows Way to Commercial Web Services" on page 21 of the May 2002 Update.

For background on the MapPoint 2004 desktop product, see "MapPoint Still Stands Alone" on page 31 of the Nov. 2003 Update.

More MPWS information is available at www.microsoft.com/mappoint/webservice.