In India, we know how challenging it can be to reach a given residential address. They are unique in format, and vary across regions, localities, and use cases. While some addresses are well-defined by street names and house numbers that are easy to find, others can be long-winded and hard to locate.
Google has launched Plus Codes — which represents a simple and consistent addressing system that works across India and globally.
This system is based on dividing the geographical surface of the Earth into tiny ‘tiled areas’, attributing a unique code to each of them.
This code simply comprises a ‘6-character + City’ format that can be generated, shared and searched by anyone — all that’s needed is Google Maps on a smartphone.
This puts so many map startups out of job (Google has also launched feature for businesses). What’s next? Integrate these with delivery apps?
The open source nature of Plus Codes means that applications that uses location services can easily incorporate it on their platforms for free.
Plus Codes can be used for a wide variety of reasons including communicating the venue of a temporary event, guiding emergency services to afflicted locations, and providing an identifiable location for complicated addresses.
