Google Street View will no longer be updated with new images of Germany: this is the decision of the giant Google, which came rather unexpectedly. Meanwhile, Microsoft is stepping in just as Mountain View is stepping away.
Google has officially announced that it will no longer update Google Street View in Germany: the Google car will no longer drive through German streets to capture the images needed to create the Street View.
The decision, quite unexpected, surprised many people; however, Google’s legal troubles in Germany began several months ago when many families first – and many citizens later – turned to the courts to demand that Google blur cars and entire buildings from images visible via Street View. Readers of FullPress will remember that in recent months, many incidents related to Street View in Germany occurred: a birth on the street captured by the Google car, the darkening of an entire village, and eggs thrown at the “secreted” buildings on the maps.
Google, although recently winning a court case also in Germany, has suddenly decided to suspend the new image capturing without giving many explanations or issuing official statements.
And while Google steps back, Microsoft emerges on the horizon, apparently ready to launch its mapping service – called Bing Maps Streetside – in Europe, starting with Germany in less than a month.
The coincidence of the two opposite decisions is truly incredible: what perfect timing!
The situation, however, formally remains the same: there are 250,000 German families who have declared themselves absolutely opposed to having their homes on the online mapping services. So how does Microsoft?
plan to operate? The company is optimistic and explains that the problem is solvable, committing to being more careful and more transparent: it seems that, about a month before the special image-capturing cars pass through, there will be a public announcement of the operation, allowing those who do not want photographs of their homes to take action. It will be enough to report their property on a dedicated website, requesting its removal, which will happen within 48 hours.
Will Microsoft manage to gain more favor among the German people compared to Google? We will see, maps in hand.
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