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Google threatens to shut down Swiss Street View
AP ^ | 5-10-11 | FRANK JORDANS

Posted on 05/11/2011 12:46:03 PM PDT by rawhide

GENEVA (AP) -- Google is threatening to wipe photographs of streets and houses in Switzerland from its online maps unless the country's supreme court overturns a ruling requiring an absolute guarantee of anonymity for people captured on the popular Street View service.

Shutting down Street View in an entire country would be the Internet search giant's most severe response yet to complaints it is violating people's privacy.

The Mountain View, California-based company said Wednesday it will ask the Swiss Federal Tribunal to throw out a lower court decision that obliged it to ensure all faces and vehicle license plates are blurred before uploading pictures to the Street View service.

(Excerpt) Read more at hosted.ap.org ...


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: behemoth; google; internet; newmedia; privacy; street; switzerland; view
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About time! I am 100% in favor of shutting google street view down! This behemoth needs to stop this street view in all countries. Google cares nothing about people's privacy, but only making more money.
1 posted on 05/11/2011 12:46:09 PM PDT by rawhide
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To: rawhide

Just out of curiosity, what type of privacy do you expect from a car driving down the street?


2 posted on 05/11/2011 12:54:32 PM PDT by kingu (Legislators should read what they write!)
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To: kingu

Just out of curiosity, what type of privacy do you expect from a car driving down the street?

I expect the privacy of visible in the area that I am in. I do not expect that anyone in the world will and can look me up at push of the button.

What happens in a world where everyone is able to find see everyone else. Privacy and safety are gone, kaput.


3 posted on 05/11/2011 12:57:52 PM PDT by Chickensoup (The right to bear arms is proven to prevent government genocide. Protect yourself!)
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To: kingu

Lucky Swiss. I would make them eliminate the entire country from all mapping and sites if I were the Swiss.


4 posted on 05/11/2011 1:00:53 PM PDT by Chickensoup (The right to bear arms is proven to prevent government genocide. Protect yourself!)
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To: kingu

I do not expect for the whole world to be able to see me if they so choose. This reeks of big brother.


5 posted on 05/11/2011 1:02:36 PM PDT by rawhide
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To: Chickensoup
But that's not what Google is providing. Frankly NO ONE CARES about you or your face. The streetscape might be interesting. Since time immemorial street scapes have been available for people to look at. They are not now nor were they ever private or privileged. In fact, kings typically wanted people to see the power and majesty of their sovereign lord ~ so they'd build a palace for them to see.

We got a couple of people in Switzerland who got caught peeing in a gutter and they didn't like it ~ I say TOUGH!

But if the Swiss government doesn't care to be on the system, fine ~ that's a nasty enough place as it is with its murder parlors and such.

6 posted on 05/11/2011 1:05:29 PM PDT by muawiyah
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To: rawhide

Big brother would require it to be the government doing it, not some private companies, as there’s Bing with their low level helicopter pictures looking in your back yard, NAVTEQ and Microsoft are both doing streetview photography.. I’m just trying to find out where the line of privacy is?

I personally think spying into people’s back yards to be far beyond the line. But I’ve never heard of anyone complain about Bing’s bird’s eye view.


7 posted on 05/11/2011 1:06:27 PM PDT by kingu (Legislators should read what they write!)
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To: muawiyah

For Germany, they blur out any parts that people request. Don’t see why that couldn’t work in the Swiss case.


8 posted on 05/11/2011 1:08:04 PM PDT by dfwgator
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To: Chickensoup

Anybody can take your picture if you’re driving down the street.

Few, however, will put that picture up on the Internet.


9 posted on 05/11/2011 1:11:01 PM PDT by HiTech RedNeck (Hawk)
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To: muawiyah

I doubt that a streetscape painting artist in Switzerland would bother to include the people peeing in the gutter, or at least not in painstaking detail.

Modern technology creates an entirely new capability with new moral issues. Maybe all Google vans should be heralded half a mile in advance with great pageantry of young boys shouting “Google van! Google van!” so nobody can complain he wasn’t warned. I’ve looked up old neighborhoods and wondered if that was a neighbor I once knew who’s been memorialized forever mowing his lawn.


10 posted on 05/11/2011 1:18:33 PM PDT by HiTech RedNeck (Hawk)
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To: muawiyah

Since time immemorial street scapes have been available for people to look at. They are not now nor were they ever private or privileged. In fact, kings typically wanted people to see the power and majesty of their sovereign lord ~ so they’d build a palace for them to see.

Uhh yes. street scapes have been always been available because I chose to walk down it or go take a picture of it. But it has not been generally available in China or on a criminal’s computer or for an everyday person to plot to bomb. Can you imagine what CW II will look like with Google?


11 posted on 05/11/2011 1:21:11 PM PDT by Chickensoup (The right to bear arms is proven to prevent government genocide. Protect yourself!)
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To: Chickensoup
"I expect the privacy of visible in the area that I am in."

Once out your door you have none.

12 posted on 05/11/2011 1:22:05 PM PDT by moehoward
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To: kingu

I personally think spying into people’s back yards to be far beyond the line. But I’ve never heard of anyone complain about Bing’s bird’s eye view.

I think that they all are an unreasonable invasion of privacy.


13 posted on 05/11/2011 1:22:48 PM PDT by Chickensoup (The right to bear arms is proven to prevent government genocide. Protect yourself!)
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To: dfwgator

They wont do that here in the US. When I asked they acutally defined it more. Sick Ba****ds.

Freedom requires privacy.


14 posted on 05/11/2011 1:24:29 PM PDT by Chickensoup (The right to bear arms is proven to prevent government genocide. Protect yourself!)
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To: moehoward

Once out your door you have none.

That’s right, I have no more privacy on the land I own because of totalitarian technologies

You dont seem to understand that it is reasonable to expect that your home and belongings will not be broadcast around the world to make some companies monies.


15 posted on 05/11/2011 1:28:26 PM PDT by Chickensoup (The right to bear arms is proven to prevent government genocide. Protect yourself!)
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To: kingu

There is a very fine line between Google and the Democrat party. They are almost joined at the hip.


16 posted on 05/11/2011 1:31:09 PM PDT by rawhide
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To: rawhide

Lucky for the Swiss!

Google and “Street View”, neither of them are necessary.

We got along fine, in many ways better, before they came along.

It’s disgusting that so much of our “New Tech” and new wealth revolves around creating more ways to waste peoples time.
I’ve stopped even trying to keep up with these “App’s” I am not a Twit(er) user, don’t steal music, etc.


17 posted on 05/11/2011 1:32:34 PM PDT by Loyal Sedition (Loyal Sedition, often described as "To the right of Attila The Hun"!)
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To: rawhide

Did you mean: Austria  

No standard web pages containing all your search terms were found.

Your search - Switzerland - did not match any documents.

Suggestions:

  • Make sure all words are spelled correctly.
  • Try different keywords.
  • Stop messing with Google or your little country disappears off the web.

18 posted on 05/11/2011 1:33:46 PM PDT by KarlInOhio (Extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice! Tea Party extremism is a badge of honor.)
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To: rawhide

Well...almost every Swiss house has a military grade rifle and 100 rounds....just give them open season to shoot out the google-vans....good target pratice....aim small miss small....aim for the camera lens on to of the vehicle.


19 posted on 05/11/2011 1:35:28 PM PDT by spokeshave (Obamas approval ratings are so low, Kenyans are accusing him of being born in the USA.)
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To: rawhide

Provide anonymity or we’ll attack you with the little white toothpick thingies from our army knives! Unless of course if they aren’t already lost!


20 posted on 05/11/2011 1:39:33 PM PDT by steveo (PETO-VT-IN-MARI-SVB-CRVCE-AVSTRALI-SEPELIAR)
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