RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:
NPR's business news starts with Apple doing some shopping.
Apple has been trying to go head-to-head with Google to provide better mapping services. Apple's latest effort to do that has a price tag of $20 million. That's how much it paid for a small startup company called WiFiSLAM, which maps indoor settings. Think shopping malls and airports. Apple confirmed the purchase to The Wall Street Journal, but wouldn't discuss its plans. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.