Global market share: 70%. Korea: 25%.
These figures represent Google Maps' application market share globally and domestically, as compiled by traffic analytics firms StatCounter and Mobile Index. Since entering the Korean map market in 2008, Google has been unable to compete with domestic players Naver, Kakao, and Tmap Mobility due to restricted access to high-precision map data. Korea is among the few countries worldwide to have built 1:5,000 scale high-precision maps covering its entire territory.
However, the government's decision to permit map data exports will fundamentally reshape a market long dominated by domestic operators. Short-term benefits are expected to include expanded consumer choice, increased inbound tourism, and improved development convenience for domestic software companies. In the medium to long term, Korean companies are projected to face "unlimited competition" with Google and other global big tech firms in advanced technologies including platform services, autonomous driving, logistics, and physical artificial intelligence.
Government Permits High-Precision Map Data Export After 19 Years—With Conditions
According to the government on June 1, the "Surveying Results Overseas Export Council"—comprising the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, Ministry of Science and ICT, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, and Ministry of National Defense—held a meeting on May 27 and announced conditional approval for Google to export 1:5,000 scale map data. Maps at this scale represent an actual distance of 50 meters as 1 centimeter. This marks the first such approval since Google's initial request in 2007.
The government limited export-eligible data to information that has undergone security processing for military and security facilities. Additionally, exports are permitted only when Google's domestic partner companies process original data on servers located in Korea and pass government review. Usage is restricted to navigation and route-finding services. A "red button" technical measure enabling emergency response to national security threats or specific dangers will also be implemented.
Foreign Tourists Can Navigate Korea with Google Maps Alone—Travel Industry Welcomes Move
This decision will enable Google to establish map services in Korea at levels comparable to those offered overseas. Google has not provided pedestrian navigation functions in Korea until now. Route-finding has consistently ranked as the top complaint among foreign tourists visiting Korea, and convenience is expected to improve significantly. In a paper published last year, visiting professors Kim Deuk-gap and Park Jang-ho of Yonsei University's Institute of East and West Studies estimated that easier access to Google Maps in Korea could increase foreign tourist arrivals by approximately 6.8 million by 2027.
The domestic tourism and map-based software development industries anticipate an expanded service base. Developers creating map-related services in Korea previously had to use Naver or Kakao maps, creating significant obstacles to global expansion. Launching overseas services required separately adopting Google's API and paying usage fees. Yoon Seok-ho, CEO of Korean tourism content platform Daytrip, said, "Now we can apply service logic and designs developed in Seoul to New York, Paris, and Tokyo without modification."
Medium-to-Long-Term Concerns Grow—Platform Dependency and Intensifying Autonomous Driving Competition Expected
Meanwhile, concerns have emerged in the platform and autonomous driving industries that this export could erode Korean companies' competitiveness over the medium to long term. Choi Jin-moo, professor of geography at Kyung Hee University, said, "Whether domestic companies or Google, the core of map services is generating revenue and obtaining data by getting users to conduct economic activities like reservations within the platform." He added, "If Google, with its massive capital and market presence, competes on equal footing with domestic operators, the survival of Naver and Kakao may be uncertain in five to 10 years."
Expert analysis suggests that exporting high-precision map data could generate economic costs (losses) of up to 197.38 trillion won over the next decade. Jeong Jin-do, professor of education policy at Korea National University of Education, argued, "Declining domestic industry revenues, system and data conversion costs, and user lock-in effects from platform dependency will accumulate, with losses growing over time."
Above all, Korean companies are concerned that Google could dramatically enhance its competitiveness in advanced industries such as autonomous driving and physical AI using newly acquired spatial data. The government maintains it will provide only limited data necessary for navigation and route-finding services. However, industry observers believe this framework will not prevent Google from utilizing precision map data to advance its technology.
An industry official said, "Navigation information is needed not only for human wayfinding but also for autonomous driving and robotics development." The official expressed concern that "the gap will widen further as Korean autonomous driving technology already lags behind the United States and China." Google's parent company Alphabet operates autonomous driving company Waymo and industrial robotics software company Intrinsic as subsidiaries, pursuing integration of Google AI with autonomous driving and robotics technologies.
Ahn Jong-wook, professor of urban information engineering at Anyang University and president of the Korean Society for Geospatial Information Science, said, "Google is just the starting point for map data exports." He predicted, "Apple has also applied for export approval, and this development could prompt requests from companies in other countries, intensifying competition in advanced technology within Korea."
However, some observers suggest that domestic platform companies including Naver and Kakao have built Korea-specialized map businesses over many years, making it difficult for Google to immediately overturn the situation. The government plans to establish support measures including spatial AI technology development assistance, geospatial industry support, and public demand creation to prevent excessive damage to domestic companies.