Google has closed Maps for Windows Phone users

Google Maps never officially existed on Windows Phone, but yesterday many users were cut off from the web version of maps. Users of smartphones with the Microsoft mobile operating system, when accessing the maps.google.com page, were redirected to the Google homepage, as reported, for example, by Verge , Gizmodo and WMpoweruser .



The quiet confrontation between Google and Microsoft has recently ceased to be quiet - primarily due to the "good corporation." Google recently announced that it will not release any applications for Windows Phone, since there is no audience there, then it refused to support Microsoft Exchange.

The official reason for closing Maps for Windows Phone users is that the service is optimized for WebKit, and Internet Explorer runs on a different engine.

However, everything suggests that the cards worked fine on WP until the decision to close them.

Microsoft says that “Internet Explorer on Windows Phone 8 and Windows 8 uses the same rendering engine,” while the cards work fine in Windows 8, so WebKit can hardly be said as the real reason for closing the service.

Apparently, Google just decided for one reason or another to start blocking Windows Phone users.

UPD1 : OlegDwrites that Google has closed maps for most non-Android users. I just tried to log in with Blackberry - a redirect, with N9 - a redirect, they say that with Symbian the same.

UPD2 : Google promised to remove the redirect: Recent improvements to IE mobile and Google Maps now deliver a better experience and we are currently working to remove the redirect. We will continue to test Google Maps compatibility with other mobile browsers to ensure the best possible experience for users.