After a first attempt 11 years ago ran into regulatory troubles, Google Maps on Wednesday launched its panoramic Street View service in 10 Indian cities in partnership with Tech Mahindra and Genesys.
Many countries have faced privacy complaints and regulatory scrutiny of the feature that offers 360-degree views of streets around the world using photos taken by cruising vehicles.Google was denied permission at least twice in the last decade by the government over security concerns, but the Indian launch went ahead anyway.
Google India Executives said on Wednesday that the company was able to meet the regulatory requirements, thanks to a new geospatial policy from India last year. This policy allows foreign map operators to provide panoramic imagery by licensing the data from local partners. "The data collection was entirely done by Tech Mahindra and Genesys," Google said, adding that the service would be available in over 50 Indian cities by the end of this year. "To address privacy concerns, Street View imagery will blur out faces of individuals and license plates," said Miriam Daniel, Vice President of Google Maps Experiences.