Google launches Plus Codes to give every location in the world a digital address

Addresses aren't as ubiquitous as you may think. 

According to Google, billions of people don't have an address, or if they do, it's not very accurate. To remedy the problem, the company launched a digital address-making system called Plus Codes.  

If you're a Google Maps user, you probably know you can point anywhere on the world map and get coordinates to that exact location, which you can then share in the form of a long, clunky URL. Plus Codes improve on this by using latitude and longitude to produce a short digital address, representing a specific location anywhere on the planet. 

Here's an example: The Plus Code "W2GJ+JQ, Johannesburg" is the digital address of Google's office in Johannesburg, South Africa. If you enter this code into either Google Maps or Google Search, you'll be taken to that location on Google Maps.  Read more...