Time saved by digital maps related services estimated to be worth 11 billion Saudi Riyals, Google-commissioned study finds

Geospatial services saves 2.5 billion liters of fuel worth SAR 1.9 billion

Better navigation can reduce carbon emissions in the KSA by 10 million metric tonnes

A Google-commissioned study conducted by marketing research firm AlphaBeta quantified the economic impact of services like Google Maps and Google Earth by looking at the benefits and value geospatial technology brought to consumers, businesses and society in 2016 in Saudi Arabia.

According to the study, modern mapping services have the potential to unleash consumer benefits worth over SAR 5.2 billion (US$1.4 b)  per year by enabling people to:

-       Travel faster: digital maps reduced travel time by 16% on average in KSA, placing the value of time saved at SAR 11 billion (US$ 3 b)

-       Save fuel: By reducing travel time, digital maps helped save around 29 liters of fuel per car, worth SAR 23 (US$ 6) in KSA per year, that’s 2.5 billion liters of fuel, worth SAR 1.9 billion (US$ 550 m) in total

-       Be safer: 41 percent of digital map users in KSA state it helps them identify security facilities (e.g., police stations).

-       Speed up shopping: KSA consumers save over 110 million hours per year from more efficient purchasing decisions. The value of time saved is SAR 4 billion (US$ 1.1 b) (based on local wage rates)

“We want to help people in the region understand what Google Maps can do for them. To do that, we need to understand maps today and the impact they have on people’s lives, which is why we worked with AlphaBeta to conduct this study. While the results reveal great benefits for consumers, businesses, and society, there remains more potential to be unlocked by geospatial technology,” said Selim Edde, Head of Government Relations and Public Policy at Google.

The report also outlines three recommendations key to tapping into the full potential of geospatial services:

○      Governments can enable the promotion, adoption and implementation of the emerging applications of geospatial technology and data by adopting policies that support the collection, sharing, and use of geospatial data and services.

○      Academia and civil society organizations can utilize geospatial technology to improve the efficiency of their major activities. Some applications include city planning, tracking environmental pollution, and maintaining important information on health and diseases.

○      Businesses could increase their investment in and use of geospatial services to enhance the value and productivity of their business, attract new customers and boost sales. A range of studies provide evidence for the positive return of investment in geospatial services. In some cases, the net benefits of geospatial services have proven to exceed investment costs by more than 10 times.

-Ends-

The full report is available to download here.

Other data points to highlight:

-       Faster response time: Digital maps reduced response times for emergency services by 3.5 minutes per call for ambulances and 2 minutes for fire brigades.

-       Curb CO2 emissions: Better navigation result of consulting digital maps can reduce carbon emissions in KSA by 11 million tonnes.

-       Purchases: In KSA, 46% of users said that they would not make a purchase if they did not consult digital maps first. Similarly, up to SAR 116 billion (US$ 31b) of sales are linked to digital maps in the Middle East.

About the methodology of the report
The analysis draws on a range of proprietary consumer data, third-party estimates, and AlphaBeta’s algorithms related to commuting and jobs data. The consumer data involves an extensive survey of online consumers across 22 countries, which are then used to produce regional aggregates[1] (based on share of online population) and global estimates. In each country, surveys draw on a statistically significant sample size of over 400 participants to provide estimates which have a 95% probability of being no more than 5% away from the true value. The countries included in the consumer survey are, by region:

●      Oceania (Australia, New Zealand)

●      Asia (India, Indonesia, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand)

●      North America (United States)

●      Latin America (Brazil, Mexico)

●      Europe (Germany, Italy, Russia, Spain, United Kingdom)

●      Middle East (Saudi Arabia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates)

●      Africa (Nigeria, South Africa)

About Google Inc.
Google is a global technology leader focused on improving the ways people connect with information. Google’s innovations in web search and advertising have made its website a top Internet property and its brand one of the most recognized in the world. Google is a trademark of Google Inc. All other company and product names may be trademarks of the respective companies with which they are associated.

For information about Google in the Middle East, please visit our Official Google Arabia Blog: http://google-arabia.blogspot.com/

For media inquiries, please reach out to salmaelshahed@google.com

[1] For 6 regions: Asia Pacific; North America; Latin America; Europe; Middle East; and Africa.

© Press Release 2017