The mounting controversy over Google’s latest ‘Street View’ venture has had us all wondering whether the search engine giant had finally bitten off more than it could chew. The technology, which adds 360 degree views of locations to maps, sparked an avalanche of complaints that it was in breach of the Data Protection Act, leaving the comms team at Google staving off attacks from all quarters as concerned citizens literally took to the streets in protest. The locals of Broughton were quick to get their pitchforks out and accosted a Google Street View car when it was spotted trundling towards their village. But one human barricade and a few reams of media coverage later, the official verdict from the UK’s Information Commissioner this week was that Google's Street View should not be stopped - ironically, it seems that the only thing the protestors achieved was to put their village on the map, so to speak. Amidst the rise of CCTV cameras and the current rush towards ID cards, super-databases and police databanks, getting incensed about Google Street View seems rather like complaining about a paper cut while marching towards the guillotine. If I really wanted to be pedantic, I could drive to Broughton this weekend, take a few snaps and post them in a blog – there would be no legislation to stop me. With Google making a big noise about its willingness to remove any images from the map on request, those people who were always going to have a problem with an online mapping system are being made to look somewhat unreasonable. Not only is this a wise PR move for Google, but the number of images that are being removed is insignificant in the grand scheme of things and doesn’t affect the functionality of Street View. A quick romp through the Twittersphere shows the debate is also alive and well within the technologically-savvy online community. While apparently happy to give details of their location, social life and day-to-day decisions between a frappuccino and a latte, it seems that some Twits are somewhat disgruntled at the thought of popping up on an online map. Others, however, champion the benefits of Street View, heralding it as an unrivalled tool for promoting tourism, finding meeting points and checking out property locations. Add to this that fact that Street View will provide a potentially invaluable source of social information for future generations, and I think we have a winner. I for one am a fan – although I realise I’ve landed on the ‘love’ side of this particular Marmite fence. I’m sure the man who was caught cheating on his wife thanks to Street View is now in riled opposition of the project... By Dana Hashem
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