BAT's Map Wars: Application outbreaks Take two years

The internet industry, every day on the "Digging Corner", the recent turn to the map.

May 30, a product manager of the Internet map told reporters that he received a continuous Baidu map and the search telephone map of the gold.

"Recently, we've been hiring so much that we have interviews almost every day," he said. "A Baidu map employees told reporters, before the spring Festival, Baidu maps staff of about 400 people, there are now 600来 people, each type of job recruitment, product engineers to more."

The company has just been a huge stake in Alibaba is also a rapid expansion of the recruit. "We now have about dozens of people on the wireless side of the product and technology, and there are 100 to 200 places to recruit." "May 31," said Feng Hanping, vice president of technology for map products.

At present, the gold map and Baidu map parity. The number of users of the gold map is 161 million, Baidu map users more than 100 million.

In addition to Baidu and Gould, Soso maps, Google Maps, tiger maps, navigation dogs, Tintin maps have invariably played the role of map life service providers. It is understood that there are more than 100 enterprises with Internet Map Service qualifications. Not only that, the underlying figure is also stirring. At the end of May this year, the four-dimensional map of the new launch of the "nearest son", a location to provide users with peripheral consumer sites, coupons and other services of the app.

Such a rush is due to the unique advantages of the map. As long as on the earth, no matter where you are, will be playing a latitude and longitude of the label, can not escape the "map" of the Finger Mountain. In the eyes of the map merchant, the map that originally is the tool of travel, can become the entrance of the information service in the future, also can become the comprehensive Life service platform.

A series of data also provided evidence of the fact that the map makers were judged. By the end of 2012, China's mobile map cumulative account number of 287 million, in mobile internet users have a penetration rate of 47.4%. Analysys International estimates that in 2015, the number of mobile map users will be cumulative 600 million, the penetration rate of 64.6%.

Mobile maps are also taking up more and more of the user's time. Baidu's 2013 first-quarter mobile Internet report showed that on the Androping stage, in the third quarter of 2012, map applications were used every day for 6 minutes, and in the first quarter of this year the average time was 7 minutes.

"Now, it is the rapid growth period of the mobile map, which has a period of one or two years." "The map wars between the internet giants have begun as the underlying information that hosts lbs," Feng Hanping said.

BAT self-building system

"Baidu Map of the user, although over billion, but at present, daily active users (DAU) is 5 million ~600 million, we want in the shortest possible time, will this number to 10 million, or even higher." A Baidu Map employee told reporters that this year for Baidu map, is very important. The overall team's KPI assessment pressure is greater.

For Baidu, at present, the map is its only on the mobile Internet, small performance applications.

However, Baidu Map is not the market first. At present, the German free navigation map has a total of 161 million users, active users over 56 million. According to Analysys International report, in the first quarter of 2013, the gold map in the mobile phone map client (including IOS6 6.4% share) accounted for 29.8% of the share, and Baidu map is only 21.6%.

The previous May 10, Gold announced the acquisition of Alibaba 294 million U.S. dollars investment. Alibaba, which holds about 28% of its shares, has become the largest shareholder.

This is not a good news for the Baidu map. "Although the future of the map will be how to develop, we do not know, but Baidu map internal, the unity of the various attempts." "A Tencent Soso map employees told reporters, now Baidu map riveting full strength forward."

When it's bad news for a competitor, it's good news for the other party. After buying Gould, Alibaba sits on 161 million mobile-phone map clients and grabs a mobile internet portal easily. And, on the bottom chart data, NavInfo and Gould accounted for more than 90% of the share. In the bag of gold, Ali also owns a map. Map as the basic data of life service, the application of imagination space is relatively large. Alibaba in the acquisition of gold before, has also spent a lot of effort to do Aliyun map, but after the end of nowhere. Ali also held the Itutong, investment in the embedded map of Tintin concessions, but the effect is not obvious.

Backed by Ali, the gold map can get more financial support, as well as a broad space for cooperation.

"With the scope of cooperation with Ali, in large data, local life services, Taobao merchants have a lot of points can be cooperation." Feng Hanping told reporters that Taobao has a lot of shops also have physical stores, can be labeled in the Gold map. A good business, Taobao coupons merchants can also access. This shows that the cooperation between Gould and Ali will be more in the local life service.

"Alibaba is only a strategic investment in gold," said one person in charge of investment and mergers in internet companies. "and Feng Hanping told reporters, at present, the gold and Alibaba only in the market level of cooperation, in products and technology, Alibaba has not sent the corresponding personnel into the German." On this, a mobile phone map product Manager A little worried, "the lack of the internet gene, if not Ali, this may allow it in the map products, as well as the application of access, business model of the exploration of some detours." ”

Baidu has also with navinfo, gold and so on to negotiate a stake, but ultimately no fruit. A senior Baidu has told reporters, "Baidu map of the user too billion, compared to Ali, Tencent, a stake in the gold, four-dimensional map of the new demand is not so strong." ”

After the gold was Ali shares, NavInfo became Baidu, Tencent competing pursuit of the only object. The map industry revealed that Tencent had also discussed investment with NavInfo, but the four-dimensional map of the new estimates and sell, the matter will be held down.

A map industry personage told the reporter, Ali after the German, "NavInfo and Baidu, Tencent's cooperation will be more closely, especially Baidu." ”

Mobile Internet era, will be Baidu, Tencent, Alibaba three points world era. For a map of this clear mobile Internet portal, fast-responding Tencent will naturally not be absent.

Compared with Baidu, Gould, Tencent's Soso map is not at the same level. At present, the number of users of Soso map is 10 million, the daily active user is 500,000. In the content, Tencent Soso map is still in the stage of perfect map information, employees still only stay in the reading of various life services industry reporting stage, just access to the public comments, good-for-nothing, and did not do too many business attempts.

But Tencent has also come up with a trick to quickly attract incremental users. In 2012, Tencent put more than 100 million dollars into Soso Street View, last year, 20 cities nationwide, the street scan completed, and 2013, Soso map intended to invest 1 billion yuan to do Street View, the goal is to cover 100 cities. At present, in the hot micro-letter, users can send their own location information to watch Street View.

In this map war, those content providers will be with Baidu, Tencent, Ali launched a series of delicate competition and cooperation. According to a O2O industry personage revealed that the public comments access to the gold, Baidu, SOSO, but the attitude of each family is not the same. and Baidu Map cooperation is "mutual preparedness", the public comments fear Baidu will comment on the user evaluation are crawling past, not open all. and comments on the information is not enough, Baidu can not help users to form a purchase, so, Baidu spend money, their own people to do the comments. and the public comments on the access to Tencent Soso map information is more comprehensive. Alibaba shares in the German, the public comments on the docking of the map of the mentality may also be changed.

Around the map, the home is also doing the layout. In the gold map, Ali investment projects, such as a taxi, Tintin concessions will be more likely to be recommended. On the Soso map, Tencent's investment in tick-tock taxis will show more opportunities. Of course, the unsuccessful investment in Baidu can only through extensive cooperation to build their empire territory.

Travel function needs to be refined

However, the map presented a large amount of information, the need for a full, new, accurate, Baidu, Ali, Tencent, any one want to build their own empire based on the map, and not so simple.

"The hardest part of making a map is judging the exact needs of the user. "A Baidu mobile cloud division executives have told reporters that users to open the map is to travel, but the specific needs, is not clear." Under normal circumstances, users to open the map needs, the map can not be clear at the beginning of that stage. When the user opened the bus, driving, navigation and other subdivision needs, then the map can be better judged.

"Now, the map to meet the needs of the user's travel is not deep enough, not solid." Feng Hanping also believes that maps perform three functions in helping people travel: positioning, searching, and where to go. In these three major functions, can be carefully optimized.

At present, map navigation is often the starting position of a large size, latitude and longitude of the building (building) obvious. In practice, however, the user's travel requirements are from which floor of a building, to a specific number in the destination building. For example, users start from home, go to the underground garage, drive to a shopping mall underground car park, and then go upstairs to eat seabed fishing. From home to the bottom of the sea, is the navigation done. But at present, only from the community to the shopping center has navigation. From the parking lot to the seabed, users often need to find their way through other means.

A map industry personnel introduction, generally have GPS, communication base station, Wi-Fi and other three kinds of positioning means, map dealers only need to take one of the ways users can be positioned, but in this way or left a lot of dead ends. This is more typical of office buildings, shopping malls, subways and other indoor, in the suburbs, rural areas of the signal is more.

You need to be more precise in your search. At present, the map is only an obvious building information collected more accurate, but for the building inside the merchant included not all. But in fact, the merchant's latitude and longitude, located in the building, where the direction of the need to know more carefully.

A Map Product manager For example, Baidu map is in accordance with faster, less transfer, less walk, do not take the subway four ways to the user planning trip routes. But this route is not the optimal route, in fact, the user wants the best, the most time-saving and labor-saving route.

The Map Product manager said that the route design did not take into account the user's bus, subway, and the time to walk to the platform. If you count these, I'm afraid the map doesn't recommend the best choice.

"It requires maps to be smarter and more accurate. Feng Hanping For example, in driving navigation, path optimization needs to be based on the user's travel time, distance, the same day the traffic congestion degree also real-time adjustment. Even on buses and subways, some routes are recommended at peak times because of road congestion. But some routes may not recommend the subway, because when the peak, the subway is also crowded.

"The map is usually installed, but in the navigation function, it is also a low frequency application, because people generally only in unfamiliar places need navigation." "A Baidu Mobile cloud division of senior executives told reporters that commuters commute routes more fixed, generally do not need to navigate." In the three or four-line city, the city is small, the route is familiar, generally do not need navigation.

As a result, travel to different places of travel plan by the map traders fancy. According to Feng Hanping, the future, when the user to a new place to go, the gold map can give accurate solutions to travel, for example, is the bus, train, car, aircraft, according to the use of the scene to do more intelligent recommendations.

"The future, we want to do a seamless trip to the end of the solution." "Feng Hanping said.

O2O not yet mature

When a user navigates to a destination via a map, the map is often turned off. Eat time, often open the public comments, find a restaurant to eat. But in fact, the maps think that they can play a far better role than this.

"The service of living is the service that after navigating, letting its nature extend." Feng Hanping told reporters that users travel always have a purpose: eat, drink, work, go home, social intercourse and so on, these are life services.

Tiger Map CEO Zhorsk that Tiger Map is not a map, but life services, to this end, he will tiger map to Tiger Treasure, in order to gradually eliminate the image of the map in the hearts of users.

So all the maps are trying. Baidu as an example, at present, Baidu map access to buy, catering, hotels, taxis and other services. To buy, for example, Baidu map not only access to a variety of purchase items, do a group purchase navigation, and there are a lot of self-purchase. A Baidu map employees told reporters, Baidu lbs division of Business team from the former responsible for Phoenix Nest Shen Personally, from this appointment can be measured, Baidu will try to make the map to produce commercial benefits.

have been trying, and constantly making mistakes.

Each map user can feel that the map has access to more and more applications, such as Western restaurants, spas, banks, gas stations, buy, snack fast food, fast hotels, taxis, coupons and so on, become more and more heavy, is not the first known map.

"Such a dazzling variety of services to show out, so that everyone feels is a hodgepodge, the user is not impressed with you." The previous Internet Product manager told reporters that in the minds of Internet product managers, good mobile apps are simple products that directly hit a piece of the user's needs.

A map industry practitioners told reporters, users in the process of using map navigation, from the point of origin to the destination, most of the only want to know 3 kinds of information: traffic conditions, traffic jams or not; the status of the destination car park; The road may need refueling, gas station information can be selected to recommend. Others, such as restaurant recommendations and discounted information, do not need to be pushed to hurt the user experience.

"Imagine, the user opened Baidu map originally is to find the route, but pushed a few nearby merchants coupons information, and prompted you, there is a store you like to eat steak." "A map industry person told reporters that not based on the recommendations of the situation is bullying."

At this stage, users have a deep understanding of the image of the map. Prior to the March, Baidu Map had a version of the line, in this version, map of the function of the image is hidden. But that version of user acceptance is not high, and then changed back.

"When a user opens a map, it is not a picture, but rather a product based on the requirements feature, and the user is happy to continue using it." The map completes the transformation from graph to life service. "A Baidu Mobile cloud division executives told reporters, now, map is navigation, find the route of the function of in-depth

People, many times to do too far ahead of the attempt, is also a waste of energy.

Now, from the minds of 300 million of mobile phone users, there is still a long way to go to get rid of the map.

It takes two years for the application to explode.

"Map applications in the mobile end of the popularity of Baidu, Ali, Tencent's map application of the outbreak at least 2 years." "An industry person who has worked on the internet map for 4 years told reporters that there are still a lot of basic work to be done to improve the Internet map."

First and foremost, the POI information (point of acquires, including categories, longitude, latitude, nearby hotel/restaurant/shop information points, short points of interest).

Tencent Soso Map will be connected to the navinfo, such as the bottom of the data, Baidu map access is navinfo, Turing data. As a result of surveying methods, areas of expertise, some of the restaurant data is accurate, and some of the map business office data. So Tencent, Baidu to first will duplicate POI data deletion, for those who have error poi to clean, modify. A Baidu map employees told reporters that Baidu map will use their own model to establish the data of these bottom maps to confirm, revise.

In addition, the user's feedback can also modify the POI corresponding information. Baidu Map launched a BGC (merchant custom content) platform, on this platform, the merchant can automatically submit their store name, address, service category and other information, at present this platform has hundreds of thousands of of the merchant use.

According to a Baidu map staff introduction, on the one hand, we through this platform, the merchant's information for quick update. China's cities have changed so much that it is impossible to get the map to update constantly, relying on the "dozen streets" of surveyors. Still need to pass information platform, let merchant submit voluntarily. On the other hand, those who pay are ranked in front of the search results when they are recommended. "Although there are few paid businesses, the future is a clear profit direction," he said. The Baidu Map employee said.

In addition to the perfection of the POI point, another difficulty in the application is the difficulty of O2O operation.

The most important thing is to be able to form a closed loop online and offline, which is also the hardest. "A Baidu mobile cloud division executives said that O2O is from the line with the passenger flow to the line down consumption, users need to go offline experience and consumption, and then pay. How these applications form closed loops relates to the successful access of this application. The main problem involved is payment.

At present, Baidu, Ali, Tencent are trying to solve the problem of payment, and also hope that hundred pay, Alipay, Tenpay can bypass the net silver to the third party to pay the limit. For example, fast payment is one of the means.

In addition, BAT has begun to train users to pay the habit of using mobile phones. Mobile phone Alipay, Baidu Cloud Wallet are attracting users to experience mobile phone payment. For example, users can pay money by mobile phone, and can also get 3 yuan of mobile phone recharge bonus.

In addition to payment, on the map to do O2O closed loop, a lot of difficulties. A Baidu Map product manager told reporters that the first is to do the user capacity to become a local life service platform. Second, there must be content that allows the user to make decisions, and can be used to help make decisions, and the user will finish the order. Thirdly, at present, the information level of the merchant is low, which needs to promote the informationization level of the merchant. Finally, the effectiveness of the monitoring is more difficult, the final transaction needs to be done through the offline, and this is difficult to monitor by machine.