France

French mapmaker takes Google Maps to court

Article published on the 2009-07-29 Latest update 2009-07-29 16:28 TU

As well as Google Maps, parent company Google Inc is also being brought to court by Bottin Cartographes
(Photo: Reuters/Robert Galbraith)

A French mapmaking company is taking Google Maps to court over what it claims is unfair competition.

Bottin Cartographes, which specialises in multimedia maps, has lodged a complaint with the Paris commercial court against the US-site and its parent company Google Inc. It is seeking 500,000 euros in damages.

The French mapmaker, which is based in Suresnes outside Paris, charges businesses a fee for providing multimedia maps. It says Google is undercutting the market by offering map services to some companies for internal use for free – if they use Google Maps on their internet site.

"Google is ruining the market," said lawyer Jean-David Scemama, representing Bottin Cartographes.

"Their strategy is to capture the market and squeeze out the competition by creating a monopoly for itself," he said.

Hearings will begin on 16 October.