Why doesn waze work with OpenStreetMaps?
Waze has the technology to create dynamic maps from consumer driving relatively quickly. This is how we created the map in Israel, but when we planned on making our app available on the US market, we decided to use an existing map as a base, rather than start the map building from scratch, and considered various map providers including OSM and TIGER. We are committed to keeping waze free for our end users who help build the system, yet we’re a commercial company who’s looking to generate revenue down the line. When looking at the OSM licensing terms, we felt that they might limit us from certain business models in the future, and, therefore, we decided to use TIGER maps. This may change in the future, however, and we are open to potential cooperation with OSM, and other, similar, services.
