Mozilla has launched Mozilla Location Service, an experimental pilot project, that offers geolocation lookups based on publicly observable cell tower and Wi-Fi access point information.
The service essentially
crowdsources and collects geolocation data through public Wi-Fi hotspots and cellphone towers, so that mobile phones with a weak GPS signal and laptops without GPS hardware are also able to quickly identify their approximate location. It's not clear how exactly these devices will be able to identify themselves, though the foundation offers two APIs for integrating the service into apps.
To contribute to the service, users can install Mozilla's dedicated Android MozStumbler app that collects data. It also features an element of gamification as users can compete against others on its leaderboard or choose to contribute anonymously. The foundation says that the service is evolving rapidly, and a more full featured experience will be offered, soon.
According to Mozilla, the service is currently in its early stages, and provides basic coverage of select locations courtesy the early adopters and contributors of the service. Mozilla says that it is committed to improving the privacy aspects for all participants of this service offering as location data is privacy sensitive.
Mozilla is also offering two set of APIs to developers for the service, one for searching for the user's current location, given what the user sees around, and one for submitting information about what the user sees around, given a location.
It's worth pointing out that a number of companies collect location data and use it for commercial purposes like ad targeting, as well. With Android 4.3, Google has also increased the location accuracy of Android devices by allowing location scanning via Wi-Fi even when Wi-Fi is set to off and not being used for data access to allow apps to get accurate location data.