Google announced on the Google Maps blog that they are now powering their own map data in the UK, Germany, Finland and Sweden.

Google maps data in the U.S. and many other countries is powered by Google’s own data. But this week, Google dropped their third-party map data provider, Tele Atlas, and switched their map data to their own infrastructure.

Google said you should notice “improvements” in the maps in these areas, including “improved water bodies and more comprehensive local park coverage.” Google worked with local agencies to improve the data, including agencies such as Germany’s Federal Agency for Cartography and Geodesy.

This also means that when you see an issue in these countries where the maps are powered by Google, you should use the report a problem link at the bottom right.

Here is a picture:

Related Stories:

• Google Maps The Great Indoors (Android Only)
• Google Maps Sports New Look & Feel
• Eye-Tracking In Google Maps: Study Shows Value Of No. 1 Ranking & Social Content
• Google Maps — Now With Voice Search
• Why Siri + Yelp = Useless Google Maps On The iPhone 4S
• Google Maps To Work With Inrix On Real Time Traffic

Related Topics: Channel: Local | Google: Maps & Local

About The Author: Barry Schwartz is Search Engine Land's News Editor and owns RustyBrick, a NY based web consulting firm. He also runs Search Engine Roundtable, a popular search blog on very advanced SEM topics. Barry's personal blog is named Cartoon Barry and he can be followed on Twitter here. For more background information on Barry, see his full bio over here. See more articles by Barry Schwartz

Connect with the author via: Email | Twitter | Google+ | LinkedIn