A proposal is under review in India where Apple may need to keep its service location for the GPS active at all times on all iPhones that are sold in India. Makers of smartphones are required to permanently turn on GPS which is satellite-assisted on the devices they manufacture.
A letter was sent earlier this year by the ICEA or India Cellular & Electronics Association representing both Google and Apple, wherein they warned the Indian government that having the GPS permanently active could be a regulatory overreach. The service is usually activated upon a location request by a particular app, and when trying to place emergency calls.
A separate directive was made but has been retracted in India, where all smartphone manufacturers like Google and Apple must have a pre-installed app from the government that does not allow users to disable the GPS and other functions. Criticism across the board seems to be the reason why the order was rescinded.
