Cupertino buys a Canadian startup and a transit-navigation service

Jul 22, 2013 12:53 GMT  ·  By

Apple has bought Toronto-based Locationary and transit-navigation service HopStop.com to enhance its own mapping offerings in iOS, according to reports.

Word on the web is that Apple bought Locationary, a small startup based in Toronto, Canada, to grab their technology and their staff. The situation should be similar regarding the HopStop.com acquisition, but few details are known at this time.

Apple gave All Things D the usual statement involving small acquisitions, saying “Apple buys smaller technology companies from time to time, and we generally do not discuss our purpose or plans.”

You don’t have to be a genius to know why these acquisitions took place. All you need to recall is the ill-fated debut of Apple Maps with iOS 6, and Tim Cook’s public apology with the promise to make things right.