MapQuest tops US App Store downloads after refusing Trump-ordered lake rename
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MapQuest surged to the No. 1 spot on Apple’s U.S. App Store, overtaking Google and Apple Maps, after it declined to adopt the administration’s “Lake America” label for Lake Ontario.
MapQuest became the most downloaded navigation app in the United States, reaching the top of Apple’s App Store list on Tuesday, according to data reported by TechCrunch. The surge follows the company’s public refusal to rename Lake Ontario as “Lake America,” a directive issued by the White House on Aug. 27.
Google Maps has already implemented the new label for U.S. users, while Apple is reportedly considering a similar change under pressure from the administration. MapQuest, a 30-year-old mapping service, saw its download volume increase dramatically, ranking fourth among all non-game apps in the country and leading the navigation category, with Google Maps in second place.
In Canada, the app was the second-most downloaded overall by Sunday night. A Reuters/Ipsos poll released Tuesday showed that only 14% of Americans supported the lake-renaming order, and 20% approved of related tariff measures, with 57% opposed.
"We took the same approach we did with the Gulf of Mexico: be part of the conversation, and give people an app that keeps the names they’re familiar with," said Doug Berger, MapQuest’s general manager, adding that usage was about 50 times higher than usual.
Berger also noted that the company is offering subscribers a tool to suggest their own name for the lake, a feature introduced after a previous federal rebranding of the Gulf of Mexico.
Apple Maps continues to display the water body as Lake Ontario, despite comments from Interior Secretary Doug Burgum that the label would soon be changed. Google’s U.S. maps reflect the “Lake America” name, while the rest of the world still sees Lake Ontario.
Protests against the renaming have taken place in Canada, including a bilingual “Lake Ontario – Now and Always” sign near Grimsby. Ontario Premier Doug Ford told ABC News that the lake will remain named Lake Ontario.