Cost savings was definitely a factor, but this is the key point from the article:
"And yet, until very recently, Lyft had limited control over that navigation experience, which was built using Google Maps.
“For our entire existence, we couldn’t fundamentally change that product,” says director of project management Ben Schrom."
I've worked in the mapping space for more than 20 years and I can tell you one of the biggest annoyances with using third party mapping data is that you are beholden to their cadence and tooling for making updates to the map - you have virtually no control over the data. This is a big reason both Google and Apple built their own map.
The benefit of using OSM is that you are provided decent tooling and a relatively streamlined process for making updates. Map data quality is incredibly important, especially for navigation and it's really hard to manage because the map is always changing - it's not a static thing.
I was part of a startup whose entire point was opening up that control. Sadly we failed to gain traction. At least our idea is still around and we may pick it back up if we find the time and energy.
"And yet, until very recently, Lyft had limited control over that navigation experience, which was built using Google Maps. “For our entire existence, we couldn’t fundamentally change that product,” says director of project management Ben Schrom."
I've worked in the mapping space for more than 20 years and I can tell you one of the biggest annoyances with using third party mapping data is that you are beholden to their cadence and tooling for making updates to the map - you have virtually no control over the data. This is a big reason both Google and Apple built their own map.
The benefit of using OSM is that you are provided decent tooling and a relatively streamlined process for making updates. Map data quality is incredibly important, especially for navigation and it's really hard to manage because the map is always changing - it's not a static thing.