China’s State Bureau of Surveying and Mapping (SBSM) has officially launched Map World, a free online map service, state media reported. Map World will "allow users to fly over mountains and plains around the world and search restaurants and traffic information across the country, free of charge," said Xu Deming, director of SBSM. The government department in May said companies providing online map services in China needed prior approval. Several leading tech firms including Nokia (NOK.NYSE), Baidu (BIDU.NASDAQ), Alibaba (1688.HK), Sina (SINA.NASDAQ) and Tencent (0700.HK) have so far been granted licenses but Google China has still not officially submitted an application, said Song Chaozhi, deputy director at the SBSM.
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