Waze Had 34 Million Users in 2012, Expects 70 Million Users by the End of 2013
Waze, the community-based navigation and traffic app that got plenty of buzz thanks to Apple’s Maps disaster, published then took down a blog post announcing that it had 34 million users in 2012. As of October, Waze had 29 million users. In a curious infographic that went along with its now-absent blog post announcing the milestone, the navigation app projected that it would have 40 million users by March, 50 million by July and 70 million by the end of 2013.
These upbeat projections fly in the face of Google Maps’ big debut on the iPhone back in December, which is no small challenge to Waze’s fast-paced growth. Also, it remains to be seen whether Waze will be acquired by a bigger company like Apple.
In November, Waze announced plans to monetize its app with a location-based advertising platform called Waze Ads. The platform would offer businesses a chance to pay for a branded pin wherever they’re located on Waze’s maps. The company was also testing special offers and pop-up promotions that would appear when a user is stopped at a red light.
