Apple’s Maps app could start displaying search ads in 2023

Apple’s efforts to expand its ads venture could materialize by next year. The Maps app on iOS devices is expected to be one of the first-party services to start displaying ads in 2023.

A previous report said the iPhone maker is aiming to double its ad revenue, which the company may achieve by placing more ads in more first-party apps. Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman specifically identified Maps as one of the apps that will likely display ads.

In a follow-up in the latest paid version of the Power On newsletter (via MacRumors), Gurman added that the development for displaying ads in the Maps app is likely underway. And the result of this work should go live sometime in 2023, the journalist added.

Maps may not feature conventional banner ads, and Apple might focus on search ads for this app similar to Google Maps, Waze, and Yelp. Based on the use-case sample provided in the report, a local Japanese restaurant could pay Apple for ad placement. And when an iPhone user opens Maps and searches for nearby restaurants with relevant keywords like “sushi,” their establishment would appear on top of the search results.

Apple is already utilizing search ads on the App Store. iPhone and iPad users may have noticed this when searching for apps to download, and some of the top results are labeled with “ad” and presented as suggested apps.

But ads are also expected to be displayed in other segments of the App Store. The same report said Apple could soon place ads on the Today tab of the App Store and even on download pages of third-party app listings.

Gurman’s newsletter last week noted that Apple is raking in around $4 billion in annual ad revenue. Aside from the App Store, the company is also displaying ads in the first-party News and Stocks apps.

Apple is currently displaying ads in the Today section of its first-party News app. And Gurman said revenue from this ad placement is being shared by Apple and news publishers featured in the app. This is aside from the banner ads that iPhone and iPad users commonly see on news article pages.

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