MapQuest's defiance over lake renaming drives record app downloads

MapQuest declined to adopt the new name Lake America for Lake Ontario, citing its policy of keeping familiar geographic names. The decision triggered hundreds of thousands of new downloads, lifting the app to the top navigation slot in the U.S. and second overall in Canada. The company also introduced a playful tool that lets users rename the lake and share results on social media.

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MapQuest's resistance follows a similar stand last year when it declined to adopt Gulf of America, offering the same kind of user-driven renaming tool. The company's ownership history includes stints under AOL, Verizon, and finally System1, which acquired it in 2019. Sensor Tower data shows the app logged roughly 184,000 global downloads in the week starting August 24, with U.S. daily downloads jumping 128% between August 26 and 30.

The naming dispute unfolds against a backdrop of strained U.S.-Canada relations, including new 50% tariffs on $20 billion of Canadian goods. Google Maps has opted to comply, showing Lake America to U.S. users only,