sition to within a designed accuracy. GPS applications are widespread in location services such as emergency assistance, and in location-based business services using smart phones. Figure 11.14 GPS satellites. Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:GPS-24_satellite.png Broadband Telecommunications Technologies and Management Case Study 11.2: Google Maps Google is one company that has taken a leading role in taking advantage of the GPS infrastructure. A number of companies offered on-line maps as the World Wide Web usage grew in the mid- to late 1990s. Companies such as Map-quest provided location search and display on the World Wide Web. Alternatively, some mobile manufacturers integrated maps into their handset platforms and provided directional assistance as applications. These services were prominently offered on the Japanese mobile handsets with GPS receivers. Yet a number of other players manufactured GPS devices for use in car navigation with audio turn-by-turn instructions, a market that grew significantly in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Initially these devices were integrated in luxury cars and later on offered as accessories to all vehicles. Prices for these car navigation devices were in the order of $2000. Google was a relatively late-comer to this field with the purchase of a little-known Australian start-up company called 'Where 2 Technologies' in 2004. They soon integrated this on-line map into a web application and started providing maps in association with their search results. This service has now become an integral part of Google services in both fixed and mobile domains and a source of advertising revenue. Google has further enhanced on-line maps with street view and Google Earth, both augmented by satellite generated information. Street view and Google Earth information collections are linked with the GPS-provided coordinates, SO these can seamlessly be integrated into the map searches. Google has further enhanced GPS accuracy with ter- restrial mobile network and local area networ