MapQuest becomes the top free iPhone app on the App Store in Canada and fourth on the US App Store after refusing to change Lake Ontario to Lake America (Joe Rossignol/MacRumors)
MapQuest is in the spotlight this week after refusing to change “Lake Ontario” to “Lake America” on its map following an executive order issued …
MapQuest's iPhone app has seen a significant surge in downloads after the company refused to change the name "Lake Ontario" to "Lake America" on its maps, despite an executive order from US President Donald Trump. The app has become the top free iPhone app on the App Store in Canada and fourth on the US App Store.
According to TechCrunch, MapQuest received "hundreds of thousands" of new downloads since its decision to keep the name Lake Ontario, with its app's usage climbing to 50 times above its normal levels. The company saw 184,000 global and 162,000 US app downloads during the week beginning August 24, representing an increase of more than 10x week-over-week.
MapQuest's general manager, Doug Berger, stated that the company took the same approach as with the Gulf of Mexico, aiming to provide an app with familiar names. Berger said, "Hundreds of thousands of people signaled to us this weekend that we got it right, by downloading our app."
Brief written by urgent.news from Techmeme, TechCrunch, MacRumors — 3 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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