Various Google logos are displayed on a Google search, Sept. 11, 2023, in New York. AP-Yonhap
The government could make a decision this week on whether to allow global giant Google Inc. to export government-supplied Korean map data outside the country, informed sources said Tuesday.
According to the government and industry sources, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, which supervises the government's mapping policy, plans to hold an interagency meeting with officials from related ministries on Friday to decide on Google's request.
A final decision could be reached and announced after Friday's meeting.
Google filed its latest request in February 2025, seeking approval for the transfer of 1:5,000-scale high-precision map data to its overseas data centers.
Earlier this month, the U.S. technology giant provided supplementary materials regarding its request to the ministry.
The additional submission is said to have met most of the conditions sought by the government, including measures to mask sensitive domestic security facilities and restrict the exposure of precise coordinates.
The documents also reportedly include technical explanations detailing how Google would process and manage the map data going forward. However, they do not contain concrete plans to establish a data center in Korea, according to the sources.
Currently, Google provides map services in Korea using publicly available 1:25,000-scale map data combined with aerial and satellite imagery. The U.S. has previously cited restrictions on high-precision map data as a key non-tariff barrier.
Google made similar requests to export high-precision map data in 2007 and 2016, but Korea had rejected them, citing national security concerns over the potential exposure of military bases and other sensitive facilities.
Source: Korea Times News
