The move comes after Google put a redirect in place to push Windows Phone users over to its search engine instead of a web version of Google Maps recently. Google claimed Internet Explorer "did not offer a good maps experience" in previous versions of Windows Phone, so the company put a redirect in place. In our own tests on Windows Phone devices, this redirect has now been removed and the web version of Google Maps is functional.

Google and Microsoft have both been sparing recently, with Redmond criticizing an FTC settlement and Google announcing its plans to drop the Exchange ActiveSync protocol for its personal Gmail account users at the end of January. Google's move to restore access to its Maps web service on Windows Phone finishes this particular battle, but the broader ecosystem war has only just begun.