Google confirms Waze acquisition

Google on Tuesday confirmed that it has acquired social navigation company Waze. Earlier reports had suggested that Google offered to pay a whopping $1.3 billion to acquire the company, reportedly beating out both Apple and Facebook. Brian McClendon, Google’s vice president of geo-products, announced that for the time being, the Waze product development team will operate separately and will not be forced to relocate to Mountain View — which was a stumbling block during the negotiations between Waze and Facebook. The company said that it plans to integrate Waze’s traffic features into Google Maps, while continuing to work with and build the “vibrant Waze community.”