Which might explain why Poe has to meet some old guy on a remote planet to get the map thingy?
No.
Think about it. At the open of ANH, Leia has the plans BUT HER COVER HAS BEEN BLOWN. Leia did not transmit the Death Star plans to Alderaan or Yavin for fear of revealing to the Empire that Alderaan is cooperating with the Rebellion and for fear of revealing the location of the Rebel base on Yavin. So she did the only thing she could think of – stuff the plans in a droid and then order the droid to carry the plans to someone she believed sympathized with her cause. THIS IS WHY LEIA COULD NOT USE ELECTRONIC TRANSMISSIONS TO SEND ON THE DEATH STAR PLANS.
In TFA, the Von Sydow character already established a communication link with Leia, thereby already potentially exposing the location of the Resistance planet (assuming it was also a secret kept from the First Order). So…why not just send on the map in that transmission?