Google Street View heads to UK

Posted by David Walker on Mon 29 Dec 2008

Smile, you might be on camera

If you live in a built-up area, there's a good chance you've seen a Google car out and about, taking images for the UK-based Google Street View in the last six months. And those images could be coming to your PC by spring 2009.

That's according to The Independent, with London, Manchester, Birmingham and Edinburgh first to get the the Street View treatment, joining overseas locations including the vast majority of US cities, plus selected cities in Australia, Japan, France, Spain and Italy. What does that mean? Well, it means you can travel around the streets virtually, with a 360° horizontal and 290° vertical view of a location offered through 3D photography.

While that's good news for many, there are concerns about 'privacy'. You see, Google has taken loads of photos and you could be in one. Have you given permission to be photographed? Of course not. Although chances are that you'll not be recognised - Google has promised to obscure the faces of any people in Britain photographed by its cars.

Link: Google Street View (via Daily Telegraph)

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