Google Map’s popular Street View feature has already accumulated a lot of appreciation in over 27 countries. The company has now announced that it will start imagery collection in Bangalore, India for Google Maps Street View.
Google cars and trikes are now on the move and capturing street level images of public locations across the city. The Street View feature enables users to virtually discover and navigate a neighborhood through panoramic street-level images. It can also be accessed via Google Maps for mobile.
Vinay Goel, Product Head, Google India, commented, “We decided to start driving in Bangalore because it is the IT capital of India and feel that the IT savvy users will be able to leverage the benefits of the product to the fullest. Street View is useful for urban development planners, law enforcement agencies, househunters, and travelers.”
The Google trike is touted to be a specially designed three-wheel pedi-cab with a camera system mounted on top. It will collect pictures from select locations in areas like Nrityagram Dance Village over the next few weeks. This three-wheel pedi-cab has gathered images from several places, comprising Stonehenge in the United Kingdom, Pompei in Italy, Legoland in California and Versailles in France.
“It lets users check out restaurants before arriving, make travel plans and arrange meeting points. Businesses can also benefit from the Street View technology by embedding Google Maps directly into their site for free. Hotels can use it to show off the convenience of their location, and restaurants can use it to raise awareness,” added Vinay Goel.
The company promises to protect privacy in Street View while allowing users to take maximum advantage from this feature. Google has developed highly sophisticated technology that blurs human faces and number plates of vehicles to make them unidentifiable. Users need not worry since the company will be highly responsive to any request received for extra blurring of images. Besides, Street View is created to comply with different local laws including those related to security and privacy in India.
The Google Maps Street View pictures are anticipated to be released soon in Street View on Google Maps.