Google Maps is no longer the unchallenged king of online services for directions and geographic search, according to Greg Sterling of Search Engine Land. A rival, in the form of Microsoft’s Bing Maps service, offers striking new functionality and robust tools for search engine optimization (SEO).
Bing’s answer to Google’s popular Street View feature is called "Street Side," and Sterling writes that the experience is more fully-featured than that offered in Street View, with impressively synthesized photographic views at a number of different detail levels. Sterling says that Street Side is not yet available outside of 56 major U.S. cities, but that plans are in the works to broaden the service.
Search engine optimization (SEO) professionals could see a marked leveling of the playing field between Bing and Google in this market, if Bing Maps is able to properly leverage its technology into a larger user base.
The 3D features in Bing Maps are based on Microsoft’s proprietary Silverlight content architecture, which could limit the possibilities for third-party development and prevent some unsupported browsers from using the features.
