Microsoft releases a new Bing Maps software development kit

Microsoft has announced the release of a new Bing Maps iOS SDK to enable developers to create iPhone and iPad applications using Bing.

According to a post on Microsoft’s Bing Maps Blog, the new software development kit gives developers a set of Objective C classes to develop iPhone and iPad applications within Xcode, along with documentation and several sample projects to help them get started quickly. In addition, the iOS map control supports Bing’s road, aerial and hybrid aerial map styles, and includes the ability to add pushpins to the maps and access the user’s location via the GPS to locate the phone on the map, the post said.

“The launch of the iOS SDK goes a long way toward rounding out Bing’s toolset for mobile developers,” the blog post issued by the Microsoft Bing Maps Team, said. “In addition to the iOS SDK, developers can also use the Bing Maps SDK for Windows Phone and the community-driven SDK for Android development. Add to these our long list of tools and services for web development and it equals a mapping service with the scale and scope to support a wide range of mapping projects.”

Also in the post, the team said to enhance performance of the platform, they separated the Bing Maps Controls from the Bing Maps services to lighten the load. This means developers can use the Bing Maps iOS Control in conjunction with the Bing Maps REST Services API – for geocoding and routing -- to build a fully featured mobile map application. Additionally, users can hit Bing search services to pull local listing information. And developers can integrate Bing Maps into consumer-facing mobile applications for free.

“We think you will find that the terms of use are less restrictive than what you find with the Apple Map Kit, with no sacrifice in functionality,” the Microsoft post said, adding, “Sign up for a free Bing Maps Key, then download the .zip file to get the control and SDK, and you’re off and running!”