How a small German Village killed Google Street View

Поділитися
Вставка
  • Опубліковано 8 вер 2024
  • Google Street View exists since 2007 and is available today on almost every phone and in almost every European country. Only in Germany the situation is different: Here you will find huge blank spots on the map and only recordings that are up to 15 years old. How did that happen? Turns out: There is a quite funny story behind it, that I'm gonna tell you in today's video.
    A film by Matthias Schwarzer.
    --------------------------------------------------
    Here are the articles mentioned in my video:
    The first news about the Molfsee protest, published in 2008:
    rp-online.de/d...
    Molfsee is searching for a loophole in the law (2008):
    www.stern.de/d...
    More about the Molfsee protest in 2009:
    taz.de/Molfsee...
    The British village Broughton stops a Street View Car:
    www.theguardia...
    Ratingen wants to charge Google:
    www.computerbi...
    Jeff Jarvis about the German Street View problem:
    www.zeit.de/di...
    Activist Jens Best wants to publish the pixelated houses:
    www.zeit.de/di...
    A theory why Germans care so much about data protection:
    bigthink.com/s...
    --------------------------------------------------
    Did you like this video? You can support me on Patreon: / matthiasschwarzer
    Or become a channel member on UA-cam!
    --------------------------------------------------
    ▪️INSTAGRAM:
    / matthiasschwarzer
    ▪️FACEBOOK:
    / matthiasschwarzertrave...
    ▪️TIKTOK:
    / matthiasschwarzertravel
    ▪️CONTACT:
    post@matthias-schwarzer.de
    --------------------------------------------------
    Intro Music:
    MÆT - Start Again
    Music:
    Epidemic Sound
    #google #googlestreetview #germany #internet #socialmedia

КОМЕНТАРІ • 2,2 тис.

  • @MatthiasSchwarzerEnglish
    @MatthiasSchwarzerEnglish  Рік тому +477

    A quick update on this story: Today (July 25) Google released new images of Germany in Street View, just as mentioned in the video. And surprisingly, these are not just shots of larger cities, as previously announced. Also smaller villages are available now. Including: Molfsee.

    • @darthgonk4398
      @darthgonk4398 Рік тому +24

      Just checked and straight away went to see Molfsee

    • @darthgonk4398
      @darthgonk4398 Рік тому +2

      @@Jack_Russell_Brown It's not as hot where I live but it stays above 30°C and the worst part of humidity. Lowest humidity is 60% and highest I've seen here is 90%

    • @ShionWinkler
      @ShionWinkler Рік тому +2

      @@darthgonk4398 45-49°C every day. yay summer. 😎

    • @darthgonk4398
      @darthgonk4398 Рік тому

      @@ShionWinkler (⁠@⁠_⁠@⁠)

    • @TheKingofTruth
      @TheKingofTruth Рік тому +3

      It is simply a lie, I drive quite often in Germany with GPS and Streetview. and the latest photos are from 2021

  • @mcbohdo
    @mcbohdo Рік тому +3354

    I always was super annoyed looking at the pixelated houses in street view. However, it's the same Google that secretly collected network data while mapping the streets, so being concerned about privacy issues is kind of justified.

    • @grandtraveller
      @grandtraveller Рік тому +75

      So you might not be using a smart phone nor are you allowing your family to do so, because that's by far much dangerous.

    • @mcbohdo
      @mcbohdo Рік тому +325

      @@grandtraveller I did not imply not to use any of these services. I think we can use them to our benefit while still keeping a healthy dose of mistrust, especially regarding Google and Meta.

    • @jk9554
      @jk9554 Рік тому +68

      iirc it was data from open/unsecured networks. If you secured your WiFi to a minimum (I think even WEP was sufficient, although even back then WEP was already superseded by WPA), you were fine.
      It's not exactly google's fault if you broadcast unencrypted data in your neighborhood...

    • @vexjujinko4554
      @vexjujinko4554 Рік тому +177

      @@jk9554 "I may have seen you naked, but thats only because you didn't lock your door"
      "Well Mr. Google, why the fuck did you enter my house in the first place?"
      Even if the networks are encrypted, their SSID(/name) can now be linked to a geographical location and associated pictures

    • @lordfunk777
      @lordfunk777 Рік тому +8

      I don't think you have anything of value for them anyways

  • @Chili_667
    @Chili_667 Рік тому +1212

    The cool thing about it is for the few places that actually have street view in Germany, it's like a time capsule. You can go to maps and when you zoom in close enough for it to change from the normal map to street view you'll see newer buildings disappear or older buildings pop up. You can see a lot of older cars on the street that have become a rare sight 15 years on. Especially if it's places you remember from back in the day it's really interesting to look at.

    • @redstonerelic
      @redstonerelic Рік тому +180

      On the desktop site, you can view all the times that the streetview car has come thru, so the old pictures will not be lost when they get updated!

    • @icannotbeseen
      @icannotbeseen Рік тому +14

      a dad my car gave up trying to fix 15 years ago or so is still visible on maps lol

    • @llanieliowe794
      @llanieliowe794 Рік тому +5

      If you go to Red Road in Glasgow on desktop you can see the biggest residential buildings in Western Europe disappear by changing years

    • @DoiInthanon1897
      @DoiInthanon1897 Рік тому +2

      As a non-German I don’t even know what the present-say Germany looks like or how it varies from 2008 Germany. Will be cool to see how much the new coverage differs from the old.

    • @ItsartoTV
      @ItsartoTV Рік тому

      I saw a Tram from 2014 It still drives this day

  • @SewardWriter
    @SewardWriter Рік тому +716

    Street View is weirdly useful. My dad has dementia, and I managed to calm him down by showing him the house where he lived before the care facility, and where Mom still is. It assured him that she was safe. Not sure what I'd have done without it.

    • @fietae
      @fietae Рік тому +61

      You could have taken a photo. Not that hard to think of. I wouldnt be happy if google had more photos of my house than i did

    • @SewardWriter
      @SewardWriter Рік тому +99

      @@fietae I was with him at the centre where he lives. How am I going to take a picture of a house on the other side of town when I'm activity calming someone with dementia?

    • @TheSeriousLukas
      @TheSeriousLukas Рік тому +22

      @@SewardWriter Take a picture before going there? Use Factime?

    • @Rilch
      @Rilch Рік тому +11

      @@SewardWriter idk didn't you say mom lives there? have her take a photo?

    • @sylvester4207
      @sylvester4207 Рік тому +56

      ​@@TheSeriousLukasIt isnt that deep bro

  • @colorbugoriginals4457
    @colorbugoriginals4457 Рік тому +209

    lived in Germany when this happened. the fear often stated was of criminals using maps to more easily find homes that looked worth targeting. among us tech folk it was often joked that robbers will simply look for the blurred out homes to hit and pass by the unhidden ones.

    • @kameljoe21
      @kameljoe21 Рік тому

      If you ran the numbers you might find that those hidden were targeted far more... Germany is stupid and their laws are stupid. You can walk down the road in Germany and see all of that yet they want it blocked on street view. Really anyone with a phone today can add photos of those blurred out houses. I think there is a website somewhere online that show blurred houses and the photos taken by people as a way to stick it to the people blurred them.

    • @billpugh58
      @billpugh58 16 днів тому +3

      😂 so true

    • @Oma_Wetterwachs
      @Oma_Wetterwachs 13 днів тому

      No, because also poor people hate street View Pics . It's a cultural Thing. Bad enough, that we have Internet and you Spy on us.

    • @HopeeInk
      @HopeeInk 6 днів тому

      Lmao what a funny conclusion 😂

    • @colorbugoriginals4457
      @colorbugoriginals4457 6 днів тому

      @@HopeeInk i know, right 😅

  • @realtk6482
    @realtk6482 Рік тому +212

    I love and understand english, but as a German I hate it when youtube translates the title of youtube videos so you think its in your language but then its in english.
    Its not even every video I see, it translates random. So annoying.

    • @jrgptr935
      @jrgptr935 Рік тому +5

      Ja, wär toll, wenn UA-cam englische Texte ins Deutsche übersetzen könnte - die meistbenutzte Sprache ist anscheinend die einzige, mit der es nicht zurandekommt (Chinesisch, Tagalog und Bulgarisch gehen ja). Und Englisch ist ausgerechnet die Sprache, die in der Schule zu lernen verboten ist/(war?).

    • @CordeliaWagner
      @CordeliaWagner Рік тому

      Why bother when you love English???

    • @realtk6482
      @realtk6482 Рік тому +8

      @@CordeliaWagner bc Im fcked up from yt

    • @epender
      @epender Рік тому +5

      I thought the translations are always set by the uploader.

    • @MsSaksalainen
      @MsSaksalainen Рік тому +7

      I noticed that it changes depending on which language I set my phone to. I don't know a workaround. Very annoying tho, I agree.

  • @KrisThroughGlass
    @KrisThroughGlass Рік тому +360

    I loved Asterix and Obelix comics as a kid. "The year is 50 BC. Gaul is entirely occupied by the Romans. Well, not entirely... One small village of indomitable Gauls still holds out against the invaders." (Wikipedia). I like Molfsee 😅

    • @robertgolding
      @robertgolding Рік тому +2

      Gaul is called France in modern times. Why do people insist on thinking Gaul was Germany? Even today a gallic type means french.

    • @sakrira
      @sakrira Рік тому +15

      @@robertgolding why do you assume they thought it was Germany? Nothing implies they didn't know it was France. I have also never heard of anyone thinking that, but it might be because I'm German myself.

    • @telebubba5527
      @telebubba5527 Рік тому +2

      @@robertgolding Because of the Franks who originated in the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany. It's also the origin of the name of France. And also Charlemagne who united France, Switzerland, Austria and........Germany, ie The Holy Roman Empire. Funnily enough not a lot of people remember that the western half of France were one with England and that several British legends really took place in France.

    • @cosettapessa6417
      @cosettapessa6417 Рік тому

      @@telebubba5527gallia was now france for romans.

    • @TremereTT
      @TremereTT Рік тому

      @@telebubba5527 Well Karl der Große funded it. He didn't speak French. He grew up speaking German/Franconian and learned some Latin from his church teachers.

  • @mbirth
    @mbirth Рік тому +199

    I remember when StreetView was introduced in Germany back then, the media spun it like it's some kind of live stream of everyone's living room window. The police even said they might be able to use this for chasing criminals.

    • @frtzkng
      @frtzkng Рік тому +123

      Name a more iconic duo than old German people and technological illiteracy

    • @David-sq2en
      @David-sq2en Рік тому +18

      LOL, the cops rally though they don't need to chase criminals and they were going to use street view in their phones instead? OMG

    • @ventreal4292
      @ventreal4292 Рік тому +2

      @@David-sq2enLOL OMG

    • @michaelmarchanda
      @michaelmarchanda Рік тому +11

      @@David-sq2en No they didn´t seriously. But there als always some people who don´t understand such concepts. Like US Kongress Members about Tik Tok.

    • @luiskp7173
      @luiskp7173 Рік тому +6

      I think it was wishful thinking. I mean live real time surveillance 24/7 is a cop’s wet dream!

  • @crybabyteej
    @crybabyteej Рік тому +201

    As someone from Grafenwöhr who was forced to move away as a kid because of my stepdad at the time being US Army-it always made me sad I could never seen how my home village was doing for so long. Thanks to this video, now makes sense why I never learned of these 'protests' and why my village wasn't ever viewable.
    Thankfully, after 20 years, I finally got to go home again last year in 2022 and makes me happy that in 2023-I can finally view our Stadtpark, where I have so many childhood memories, on street view.

    • @MarkPentler
      @MarkPentler Рік тому +5

      Well, this is just absolutely lovely 🥹

    • @BoostedTele
      @BoostedTele Рік тому +3

      Im sorry to be the one to tell you this but Grafenwöhr, same as most of the upper palatinate area, still isnt on Street View even though the new Germany coverage was now released. There is still a lot of coverage missing outside of big cities, even though its much better than before.

    • @crybabyteej
      @crybabyteej Рік тому +7

      @@BoostedTele guess I out to clarify that my version of 'street view' is being able to see businesses near our park and see said park in the background in today's time. I'll take what I can get to see windows of my home village-been homesick for so long (I'm 33 now) so any little nuggets I can get, I'll take it with grateful hands. 🖤❤️💛

    • @crybabyteej
      @crybabyteej Рік тому +3

      @@MarkPentler hopefully some day, in the NEAR future, we can have legit street view and not me relying on businesses to see updates of my village's development progress. 😔

    • @lucbloom
      @lucbloom Рік тому +2

      Awwww

  • @thespacexplorer6552
    @thespacexplorer6552 Рік тому +154

    fun fact: here in Hamburg, in the south part at the industrial area, there's an old abandoned factory from the early 19 hundreds. And it's been abandoned since 2009. Today it's a very run down place, however the street view is from 2008, so the footage seen is when the factory was still in use. That really shows just how outdated google street view is in Germany, because only very rarely will you see footage from anywhere after 2008. Sometimes you'll see some footage from 2010 if you're lucky, but anything later is basically impossible to find.

    • @Yays_A1
      @Yays_A1 Рік тому

      What is the factory called?

    • @thespacexplorer6552
      @thespacexplorer6552 Рік тому +5

      @@Yays_A1 New-York Hamburger Gummi-Waaren Compagnie

    • @fabib2031
      @fabib2031 Рік тому

      Apple maps is newer

    • @thespacexplorer6552
      @thespacexplorer6552 Рік тому +6

      @@fabib2031 I'm aware, I watched the video, but I am specifically talking about Google maps.

    • @MCTogs
      @MCTogs Рік тому

      There isn't any street view in that street or anywhere near it? Just a 360 view of the inside of a building

  • @cacklebarnacle15
    @cacklebarnacle15 Рік тому +237

    Molfsee has a pretty cool Freilichtmuseum (open air museum), in wich you can see and enter 60 historic buildings. The special thing about this is, that these buildings have been taken from their original places all over Schleswig-Holstein and been transportet brick by brick, rebuild in the original orientation and then gotten a historically accurate interior as well. The oldest buildings are around 500 years old. And you can see the different cultural influences mirrored in the buildings as well.
    There are also several businesses run in these houses, like a bakery, a smith, a creamery etc. and you can buy goods from their productions.

    • @SIC647
      @SIC647 Рік тому +9

      Thank you! I love those places, I will make a note of Molfsee.

    • @cacklebarnacle15
      @cacklebarnacle15 Рік тому +13

      @@SIC647 definitely check the buildings from the northern most areas (Nordfriesland and Schleswig-Flensburg) for the door placement and hight. iirc those areas were repeatedly under danish rule and one of the kings decided, that all main doors should face north and be so low, that everyone exiting the building would be forced to 'bow to the king in the north' or something like that.
      at least that was what i was told

    • @naturegirl1999
      @naturegirl1999 Рік тому +1

      That sounds so cool 1ool

    • @SIC647
      @SIC647 Рік тому +7

      @cacklebarnacle15 To be completely correct, those regions weren't under Danish rule. Rather, the Danish kings were the German dukes of those regions. The regions were technically still German länder.
      Yes, it is confusing.
      And for about 500 years it didn't make any difference, until a stupid Danish king decided to make Schleswig-Holstein fully a part of Denmark (yay, nation states, the concept has only brought good things with it 🤥 ).
      Got his ass kicked.
      /Dane

    • @SIC647
      @SIC647 Рік тому +9

      @cacklebarnacle15 But by the way, the door placement was common in the whole if Denmark back then. Low doors meant that less heat escaped from the home (heat travels upwards). That is all there is to it.
      You see it in Iron Age houses and right up until the late 1800s.
      There is an actual travel log from an Arabian merchant who visited Denmark in the Viking Age.
      He recounts that when he was going to enter a noble's home, they had such a door. He sat down on his butt and scooted in, as he would bow to no one.
      In the text, he sounds quite proud of himself for having outsmarted them.
      I reality it had nothing to do with bowing, and the Danes he visited probably though he was a wierdo who didn't even know how to enter a house.

  • @ChikunVA
    @ChikunVA Рік тому +39

    As someone who's from within the Ruhrgebiet, I never really noticed that Germany is such a huge gap within the EU. I only realised it last year and ever since asked myself why that was actually the case.

  • @shagrat47
    @shagrat47 Рік тому +334

    I remember, when it leaked to the public, that google not only took photos of the houses, but scanned ALL WiFi networks (SSID) with location etc.
    So they can pinpoint an SSID on anyone's smartphone to a location...
    Another city I've heard of that was pretty open to collecting all sorts of data, was Amsterdam (Netherlands) , where Hitlers armies could easily go through the extensive data of a census ("Bevolkingsregister") that listed religion, among other irrelevant data for a census. It took them just a few days to identify everyone with the "wrong" religion marked behind his name. If those people would have objected to the collection of data, that wasn't required for a census, some of those may not have ended up in concentration camps... Makes you think about privacy and data collection on a "need to know" basis. 🤔

    • @gianlucabiehl8541
      @gianlucabiehl8541 Рік тому +22

      Google will take the GPS location of your home WiFi as soon as a Android connects to it lol

    • @shagrat47
      @shagrat47 Рік тому +27

      @@gianlucabiehl8541 only if your GPS is activated... which you should deactivate when not in use. Not only for privacy concerns, but it also adds battery life. 😁

    • @gianlucabiehl8541
      @gianlucabiehl8541 Рік тому +26

      @@shagrat47 Because the location is only determined via GPS... Yeaahh... lol. Google also uses other network services to determine the location of devices.
      Besides, as a WiFi owner, I can't force my guests to turn off their GPS.

    • @undeadwerewolves9463
      @undeadwerewolves9463 Рік тому +3

      That is actually really and excellent point…

    • @flixilux
      @flixilux Рік тому +13

      And Not to mention that every time you use any Google service, your IP Address also "gives out" your approximate Location. Correlating this to Nazi Germany is in my eyes incredibly narrow-minded and Shows a Lack of understanding for the technology that you are trying to demonize.
      (Edit: added the Word "Germany")

  • @timknight68
    @timknight68 Рік тому +19

    An actual piece of journalism! Told a story. Gave room for several perspectives. Food for thought without influencing the audience's interpretation. No bias, no slanting, no propaganda. Well done, sir!

  • @lorenzo12floxy
    @lorenzo12floxy 11 днів тому +5

    Google streetview should stay unavailable in germany. It just has some kind of vibe to it. To drive and not know where you end up.

  • @CordeliaWagner
    @CordeliaWagner Рік тому +29

    It's Google.
    I don't think Streetview is more important than privacy.
    People used to find Locations without Streetview.
    I don't want my privacy tradet to a company like Google to make other people's lifes just a little more convenient.

    • @christianbarnay2499
      @christianbarnay2499 Рік тому +5

      Do you file against all people passing by who keep their eyes open when they see your home?
      As long as Google blurs all faces, nameplates and car number plates and the Google car stays on public roads your privacy is protected because it's impossible to link the exterior view of a random building or house to your identity.

    • @thefearhawk8805
      @thefearhawk8805 11 днів тому

      @@christianbarnay2499 keep on licking the boot and make surprised pikachu face when tech companies misuse your data again...

    • @a_lethe_ion
      @a_lethe_ion 18 годин тому

      Other people don't spread your access to potentially everyone who has internet access, billions of people

    • @disnonn
      @disnonn 17 годин тому

      @@christianbarnay2499 Well, those people at least have to come, and if they stare at my house for a longer period, will have a nice chat with the local police. The barrier is a bit lower on the internet, hm?

  • @tonycutler3769
    @tonycutler3769 Рік тому +82

    Great video! Honestly, I was surprised when I saw your sub count, I was expecting at least 100x that, the quality of this video is on the level of the UA-camrs with hundreds of thousands to a few million subs. You deserve way more!

  • @frtzkng
    @frtzkng Рік тому +16

    This whole situation means that Street View in Germany inadvertendly turned into a time capsule. Some places have seen massive changes since 2008, and on Street View you can see them before all of these changes- e.g. buildings which have since been demolished, ground which wasn't built up yet or roads which had a different setup.

    • @Jehty_
      @Jehty_ Рік тому +5

      You can do that in every city in every country.
      Google has the older pictures still available.

    • @BUMMY105
      @BUMMY105 Рік тому +3

      you can easily access previous image captures of any area through the "See More Dates" button at the top-left corner of Street-View on PC. I never explored Google Maps on Android, and I never owned an iPhone since 2014, so I can't really say where it is on smartphone devices.

    • @georgeandrews1394
      @georgeandrews1394 Рік тому +1

      ​@@BUMMY105 Same on Android, just in a different location on the screen. I checked after I read your comment; it was cool seeing the old houses that had been torn down for new developments in my neighbourhood.

  • @Timo_Scheffler
    @Timo_Scheffler Рік тому +66

    As a German with grandparents living in Spain I was always fascinated by the fact that I could see their house on Google street view. I know literally no-one who was against street view apart from those who are always against anything 😅 thanks for the cool video and showing the story from a German perspective.

    • @internet_userr
      @internet_userr Рік тому +4

      I know where your grandparents live....
      Spain

    • @andreaskubler98
      @andreaskubler98 Рік тому +4

      ​@@Stevie-Jyou are absolutely right. At the moment Google Streetview shows your house, your life is completely in the hands of Google. You give up every existing rights about your privacy. Go on fighting 🤮

    • @nnnnnn3647
      @nnnnnn3647 Рік тому

      Germany and Austria are open-air museums of Europe. Now that the automotive industry is switching to electric, it will mean the end of the dominance of German manufacturers. They will be like Nokia. He can't write software, and he can't understand the new client.

    • @grimreaper3882
      @grimreaper3882 Рік тому +8

      @@andreaskubler98 Unlike any other random person that can make photos of you house because a street is you know, a public place?

    • @szymonbaranowski8184
      @szymonbaranowski8184 Рік тому

      being against everything is a human right 😂
      also you and swedes made Spanish estates unaffordable for locals while they are now replaced by migrants who you also invited to Europe in millions
      thats very inhumane and immortal

  • @cheeseionyt8660
    @cheeseionyt8660 Рік тому +7

    I agree with the idea about having warning that a google street view car will be updating their maps in your town with notice to the local council because I know people who don't want to be seen on google maps and be possibly judged for years.

  • @AN-nt3uv
    @AN-nt3uv Рік тому +117

    I have been there during elementary school in the 80ies and actually Molfsee is the home of Schleswig-Holstein's open area museum displaying houses and lifestyle from 1600 onwards....so much more important than some internet issues.

  • @derjoghurtmitderecke
    @derjoghurtmitderecke Рік тому +93

    Awesome video, Matthias. Took a while to get used to you speaking english to be honest. 😁 Good job, mate!
    Also quite an investigative video. Most people know that Google had and has problems with their services here in Germany. Maps had issues aswell if I remember correctly. People were concerned and claimed that it could be used to precisely plan burglaries.
    Then again often we don't know the exact reason behind all this so it's nice that you shine some light on it. Interesting as always.
    Dankeschön. 👍🏻

    • @CZghost
      @CZghost Рік тому +2

      Maps could be used to plan burglaries with pretty much any service, the burglars might only need a paper map for them to do this if they have to. That's a possibility that was always there, burglars just mapping out lucrative areas, lurking around and marking tipped houses on the map with a sharpie. Technology only made it easier and more distant, burglar only needs to hop in the Street View to see the houses and plan burglary accordingly to that, and next time the burglar arrives at the spot, they are prepared and ready. But keep in mind that as well as technology made it easier for planning and mapping out the burglary, it also made it significantly more challenging to break in and tresspass. If you see a nice and expensive looking villa, chances are the house is literally filled with technology that actively monitors and protects the grounds. Things like CCTV and ESD (Electronic Security Device) were not really that common in 80's, they were not even used at all in Eastern Europe and Eastern Germany before the fall of socialism. Nowadays, I think that 90% of houses you find in lucrative areas will include at least one type of such protection. So while technology made it possible to plan and map out burglary before physically going there, it also made it much more difficult to overcome the protection of the property.

    • @nigratruo
      @nigratruo Рік тому

      @@CZghost This is total bullshit and not true: This has NOT been used for burglaries. The fact is that Germans are paranoid (often the old people, which are also in power in the CDU) and make up dangerous and negative things that don't exist. If you plan a burglary, you need actually real time data, you plan a stake out on site, because google maps all around the world is not accurate and not current. You want to see who leaves when and returns when, is there a lot of traffic, etc.

    • @istudios225
      @istudios225 Рік тому

      LOVE his accent! ❤Don't change, Matthias.👍

  • @hjs6102
    @hjs6102 Рік тому +22

    Manchmal wird eine laute Minderheit als Mehrheit wahrgenommen, weil die Mehrheit einfach schweigt...
    Sometimes a loud minority is perceived as a majority, because the majority is simply silent...

    • @user-xh4ht2wb1r
      @user-xh4ht2wb1r Рік тому +1

      wie wahr

    • @ulie1960
      @ulie1960 Рік тому

      This is correct, but it is also correct that no one can knew how each and everyone in this silent majority would decide if they have to answer. So the minority could be a majority in the end, we just don't know. The only thing one can say is that if you don't answer or don't vote, you might not complain about the result in either way.

  • @atmel9077
    @atmel9077 Рік тому +100

    I always use Street View to find streets with low traffic when cycling. I didn't knew it wasn't available in Germany. To me the story seems to be more about politics than about privacy. In the end Google got so annoyed that they just gave up and didn't do anything for 15 years because they feared another debate.

    • @frtzkng
      @frtzkng Рік тому +12

      Well Street View in Germany is about as patchy as adequate cycling infrastructure is

    • @MsHumanOfTheDecade
      @MsHumanOfTheDecade Рік тому +1

      @@frtzkng come up to niedersachsen, its really good here

    • @GreenCinco12Official
      @GreenCinco12Official Рік тому +6

      They still drove around and recorded just didn't used the pictures for streetview.
      It's not like we don't have google maps and real time traffic ^^

    • @user-xh3nm8oe2l
      @user-xh3nm8oe2l Рік тому +12

      I'm all for privacy, but everything that can be seen with Street View can be seen by any stranger from the street, so what's the point of prohibiting it?

    • @hiltonchapman4844
      @hiltonchapman4844 Рік тому +1

      @@user-xh3nm8oe2l Ah, yes!
      So you've read that poem about an Arab, his tent at night, and his camel. That's the lesson for us in today's hyperconnected world!
      HC-JAIPUR (23/07/2023)
      .

  • @edwardpaulsen1074
    @edwardpaulsen1074 Рік тому +8

    I think I may have a unique perspective on some of this... My Aunt and Uncle lived in Göppingen and took care of me as a wee lad almost sixty years ago... I had the opportunity to serve as a foreign exchange student and a bit later I managed to get stationed fairly close to my Aunt and Uncle when I served in the US Army back in the '80s... I had the opportunity to speak to many of the people that had direct experience with the events in the 1940s... Many of the Germans were very sensitive to those events and there was a VERY strong determination to NEVER allow that kind of thing to happen ever again. They had first hand experience of the horrors as well as the intense distrust that developed because of those actions. I can very easily understand the trepidation and distrust from the older population in regards to a foreign entity essentially invading their privacy to that level. Most people today have little to no connection to what happened and I observed many younger people exhibiting an almost flippant attitude towards it even back then. I still have a certain coin and a copy of a certain book from a certain Austrian Painter that was handed to me when I went back to the US that would have had me arrested by the Polizei if they had known about it. I fairly strongly believe that there was still a fair proportion of the population that still remembered and were holding true to some of the vows they made regarding that time period and the excesses that were put into play. As time has marched on and the direct memories have stopped being passed down, I think that history has become far more diluted. I hold great respect for the Germans who made those choices, and I understand the blurring and lessening of the events for the younger generations. Germany has struggled for its' past and I can agree that the time of healing has arrived. Then again, I also recognize the very real hazards that are making a comeback due to those fading memories. I can only mournfully wonder, why we have failed to learn and maintain the harsh lessons we have so painfully learned from history...

  • @j.h.arnold
    @j.h.arnold Рік тому +10

    If I recall correctly, BILD Zeitung led the charge against Google Street View, as they perceived Google as an information competitor. The house I live in, in Berlin, has 24 apartments. 1 person who lived here for all of 18 months had the house pixelated, against the wishes of every other tenant. Nuts.

    • @HauntedXXXPancake
      @HauntedXXXPancake Рік тому +1

      BILD: "Trampling all over Peoples privacy for money is OUR Business" 🤣

    • @frtzkng
      @frtzkng Рік тому

      Which is really cynical, as BILD, and their parent company Axel Springer AG, violate privacy laws for individuals on the regular, and very extensively.

    • @kretRL
      @kretRL 13 днів тому

      average Bild move:

  • @greatgamingchannale8257
    @greatgamingchannale8257 Рік тому +10

    Ratingen is a very rich town close to Düsseldorf essentially functioning as a suburb where a lot of rich people own housing so a lot of people there just don't want Google to photograph their property.

  • @scoobsm6994
    @scoobsm6994 Рік тому +228

    Interesting video. While I use this feature often, especially when trying to go somewhere new. But, I'm also very understanding of privacy concerns, and the wishes of people to try and retain some control of some semblance of privacy in this age of anything, anywhere. So good on you Germany for sticking to your principles! Also, it would be interesting to know in this resistance was higher in the East. Also interesting to hear that google is still capturing the data, but just not publishing it. We need to be wary of tech giants.

    • @PityMeofDurham
      @PityMeofDurham Рік тому +5

      Yeah, since Stasi is the largest intelligence agency to ever exist I wouldn't be surprised.

    • @somebod8703
      @somebod8703 Рік тому +3

      @@PityMeofDurham Size is no match for the automated algorithms of the NSA (or similar agencies in China etc.).

    • @GeekOfAllness
      @GeekOfAllness Рік тому

      The Google data is available now. The bigger issue, that Google fixed in their algorithm years and years ago, was including pictures of people in their back yards and stuff. It seems they quit removing entire people and now just blur faces as you can see here: www.google.com/maps/@54.26522,10.072132,3a,15y,315.91h,87.87t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sr_P1umtbG6Qy4uLBsJXhhQ!2e0!7i16384!8i8192?entry=ttu
      Or better, here: www.google.com/maps/@54.2655671,10.0703997,3a,25.7y,232.4h,78.11t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1soe-hDUx8ch-hITjWL-Gkeg!2e0!7i16384!8i8192?entry=ttu
      I do feel like it would be better if they could completely remove the humans. The odds are those guys are pretty easy to recognize based on body shape and clothing choice. Maybe the second guy doesn't want people knowing he smokes, and now it's immortalized for all to see. He's in a public space, so anyone could have seen him walking about, but it's still not hard for Google to write some algorithms to remove him from the image.
      The first guy is in a private yard. And, while he's clearly visible from the road, he might not want people knowing he visits that particular house. Again, anyone walking by might have seen him, but there's still no particular need for Google to display him.

    • @Newlife-ol6pk
      @Newlife-ol6pk Рік тому

      Yes these "tech" are just like rapists .No difference of mentality whatsoever.You say clearly You don't want something and they find ways to do it anyways ,one more time and one more time because It doesnt matter the person said no ,the only thing that matters If what they want..So really they should be in prison and hope people will wake up .. Facebook,google , UA-cam..Their place is behind bars for criminal activity.

    • @vocassen
      @vocassen Рік тому +2

      The fact that they were continuing to capture data and not publish it should tell you more about their real goals. They want data, e.g. how you call your wifi network and where it is, so that they know where you are even if your GPS is off for "better user experience" I'm sure

  • @tom1stein2
    @tom1stein2 Рік тому +5

    @MatthiasSchwarzer: The "Panoramafreiheit" (right to take a picture of everything that you can see from a public place) applies only to pictures taken from the hight of your eyes, without any tools. As Google mainly used cameras from a higher viewpoint (about 1 m on top of a car), those photos are partly illegal, depending on what they can see.

  • @mururoa7024
    @mururoa7024 Рік тому +31

    We don't want our houses to be seen by total strangers on internet! We only want them to be seen by total strangers on the street! 😂😂😂

  • @aresee8208
    @aresee8208 Рік тому +15

    I like Street View for what is, essentially, remote tourism. I can visit places I've always wanted to see but will never get to. (Plus, it's helpful for finding places you do want to go to.)

  • @HerraTulitikku
    @HerraTulitikku Рік тому +5

    I was one of the person who let the house in which I lived pixelated. My reason is different, I wanted to make the house unattractive for tourists, because many apartment owners turned their apartements in commercial air bnbs, because they could make more profit with tourists as with tenants.

  • @anna-5104
    @anna-5104 Рік тому +8

    The good thing is though that I could virtually stroll around my old neighbourhood in Berlin from my childhood. It's so nostalgic, since a lot has changed since then. I'm kinda thankful it wasn't updated haha xD

    • @jessali_
      @jessali_ Рік тому +6

      You can always access old Street View images when you click "see more dates" in the upper left corner when you're in Street View.

  • @PockyNightmare
    @PockyNightmare 9 місяців тому +2

    i've always wondered why germans were so weird about their privacy, i never thought about the spies.. it makes a little more sense to me now, thank you!

  • @HauntedXXXPancake
    @HauntedXXXPancake Рік тому +18

    As somebody who works with drone-photography,
    I recognized some of my "favourite" Characters in this one.
    Like the local Politician who thinks he or she can overrule federal law,
    even when they admit it's purely for harassment.
    The rich folks who think you want to steal and my 2 favourites:
    Incredibly boring folks who are convinced you want to spy on their incredibly boring Lifes &
    people you'd pay to NOT see naked, who think you're a peeping Tom. Siiiigh ...

    • @gedw99
      @gedw99 Рік тому

      I think it’s the stassi but not just that. It’s very conservative in Germany..
      it’s a lovely place too. The forests everywhere. Not too built up.

  • @thetaleteller4692
    @thetaleteller4692 Рік тому +23

    Even more funny - Apple Maps and its version of "Street View" works perfectly fine in Germany.

  • @HypzEU
    @HypzEU Рік тому +13

    I actually can't believe what I see rn 😂 I acutally live in Molfsee and it was so insane random for me that you visited my town haha

  • @jakobfromthefence
    @jakobfromthefence Рік тому +12

    As an expat living in Germany I can attest that this is a very, very German story. 😂❤

  • @TheMsLourdes
    @TheMsLourdes Рік тому +11

    I'm american and I totally get it vis-a-vis germany being privacy conscious. It is a cool service, but it can be turned on people so easily and I can quite get behind the thought that, google can make maps, but maybe street views is a step too far.

  • @thedude5295
    @thedude5295 Рік тому +3

    You were doing so well too, Germany. I didn't know there was going to be a bad ending. Sad.

  • @red.aries1444
    @red.aries1444 Рік тому +23

    It's wrong that there is no additional Street View available in Germany since 2008!
    It's right, that there is no official material, which has been made directly by the company, but several volunteers have uploaded their selfmade material to Google. If the quality is good enough and after blurring the faces, Google made this content available. You only need the right equipment to film your enviroment. If Google accept your material your chosen name is mentioned.

    • @sirjackify
      @sirjackify Рік тому

      also Apple has Street View for basically all of Germany since at least a year

    • @meep.472
      @meep.472 Рік тому +1

      ​@@JaneSmith-nothingnesswho asked

    • @B__C__
      @B__C__ Рік тому +1

      @@meep.472 I did in the alternate timeline parallel-universe known as America. I've had my home blurred out for all time on Apple, Google and the other Google: Bing, because privacy should be a thing, though I'm not going to go so far as Jane and yell at all the 'whippersnappers'--I still am one after all. 😉

    • @HelmetmanTheSwede
      @HelmetmanTheSwede Рік тому +3

      @@JaneSmith-nothingnesswell it’s a useful tool for places where you can’t really see how to walk or when visiting a place you’re not familiar with

    • @Dunno1999
      @Dunno1999 Рік тому

      ​@@JaneSmith-nothingnessok Jane Smith, then try to destroys Google HQ with help of German army because how they extracts many privacy data all over world!

  • @user-vi3fy2cc9z
    @user-vi3fy2cc9z Рік тому +9

    My guy keeps calling a place with 5000 residents a small vilage... I live in a small vilage with 200 residents and would consider a place with 5000 residents a small town

  • @RolandMorgenroth
    @RolandMorgenroth Рік тому +4

    Streetview is a big problem in Germany. But nobody minds highres 3D "satellite" pictures that are taken from airplanes in google maps.
    Here everyone can see private things like a swimming pool in your backyard.

    • @AndroidNation
      @AndroidNation Рік тому +2

      Street View is only a problem with Google though. If you look on apple maps, most of the german homes have been photographed by Apple.

  • @Jimages_uk
    @Jimages_uk Рік тому +8

    I love the idea of street view where I live. I can look back at my garden growing over a number of years, see all my previous cars, and even check when the roads have been repaired, a font of helpful data. Having said all that, I am not happy with Google in general, they are the most prolific data mining company in the world, having said that, Facebook, and UA-cam are probable not so innocent either.

    • @tobbcittobbcit8899
      @tobbcittobbcit8899 Рік тому +1

      Facebook belongs to META which should tell you enough

    • @suncat530
      @suncat530 Рік тому +2

      youtube belongs to alphabet, aka google

  • @jonahlloyd3149
    @jonahlloyd3149 Рік тому +1

    Funny story - in Guernsey we threw the Google Cars out of the island as soon as they turned up, we have never had street view here, no protests required just common sense and our own privacy laws.

  • @jayerjavec
    @jayerjavec Рік тому +11

    Now I know. Thanks for sharing this interesting history.
    Just applied and pixelated my house.

  • @anthonyross-702
    @anthonyross-702 Рік тому +17

    During the video, when you had the German text, I had flashbacks to when I tried to learn German as a child. Since I'm syllabically impared, I failed miserably. Great video, thank you.

  • @akah679
    @akah679 Рік тому +4

    What a timing! I just randomly opened one of the streets on Google maps I used to live in Hamburg a few days ago and realised it got updated in 2023. Was very curious about it but never searched anything on this topic. And now this video popped up 😄

  • @CarstenBauer
    @CarstenBauer Рік тому +2

    Very entertaining video, thank you. I am German born but been in Australia for 40 years, and love visiting and viewing Germany virtually. Hopefully I can see more of Germany soon.

    • @szymonbaranowski8184
      @szymonbaranowski8184 Рік тому

      the perfect vacations, drinking beer on own hamack in summer and visiting Europe virtually
      so practical and money saving

    • @coover65
      @coover65 Рік тому

      I'm Australian but lived in Germany as a teen back in the late 1970s for a few years. Absolutely love the country and despite regular trips back I still have so much of Germany still to explore. Cheers from Tamborine Queensland.

  • @QuixoteCoyote
    @QuixoteCoyote Рік тому +2

    I planned a custom bike route from Copenhagen to Barcelona last year. Street view was an invaluable tool to see what the route was really like, and catch "recommended bike routes" that map software got completely wrong. The section through Germany was much more mysterious and uncertain. I enjoyed being more surprised by the scenery, but there were also unwelcome surprises. Luckily Germany's recommended bike routes are pretty good and updated in map software... whereas if France hadn't had street view it would've been a disaster trusting their recommended routes lol.

    • @alexwyler4570
      @alexwyler4570 Рік тому

      russians africans and chinese hackers criminals ruined it for all of us.

  • @Terrados1337
    @Terrados1337 Рік тому +5

    "Oh no! Google is taking pictures of my house!" (caption under a selfie, send from android device, posted on twitter)

  • @hermask815
    @hermask815 Рік тому +5

    My data are sold at a price.
    Why don’t I get a share?
    Street view is worth money , too.
    So the towns and villages should receive some royalties, too.

  • @Vasyl40
    @Vasyl40 Рік тому +8

    I worked as truck driver in EU, and that street view was very helpful when U building the route , especially helpful with smaller companies , U can see how to drive safely to that place.

    • @imaginerus
      @imaginerus Рік тому

      You can save time by leaving out the spaces before the commas and use this time to write 'you' instead of 'U' 😉
      But seriously, but I really was confused at first by what you meant with 'U' lol

    • @Vasyl40
      @Vasyl40 Рік тому

      ​@@imaginerus I don't know why , but I love to use that caps letter shortcut 4 some cases )) U spot that))

    • @szymonbaranowski8184
      @szymonbaranowski8184 Рік тому

      ​@@imaginerusit's annoing baht kuait nohrmahl
      as lengweech ys a leeveeng feeng
      & U kan onlee axapt

  • @HepCatJack
    @HepCatJack Рік тому +3

    I remember that back in the mid-1990's in the former East Germany when driving and if you missed an exit, sometimes you would drive for a long time before you would encounter another exit to go back the way you came. I would struggle with paper road maps, and although people were kind and tried to be helpful the language barrier made it difficult to understand the directions as I spoke neither German nor Russian. I am also not sure that today the young generation would even know how to use a paper map. I tried to drive to a dance in Frankfurt from the Plauen / Hoest region but I drove a total of 8 hours, got lost multiple times and ended up near Nürenburg. One difference from what I was used to was one would drive towards the next city on the way to the destination whereas I was used to driving according to cardinal points South, East, West. If you don't memorize the order of the cities on your way it's more difficult. Eventually, I wrote down the name of the cities on a piece of paper before leaving. Some GPS existed back then but they were voice only and I only saw one in a Taxi, it was the first one I ever saw and though something like that would be very useful for me. I kept looking for poles with street signs by habit not yet used to the fact that they were on the side of buildings. Einbahnstraße and Umleitung seemed to be very popular street names. :-)
    Arriving in Germany having flown from overseas, not having slept made it difficult to both find the city I was supposed to go to and once there to find my hotel in the city. Then there was the struggle of being new to driving a manual car instead of an automatic in a city with lots of big hills with people honking behind me when the car would stall. Having street view is very useful to get an idea of what the place I'm going looks like beforehand so that I don't get as lost anymore. I understand the privacy issues, but it makes life easier for visitors.

  • @williamstrachan
    @williamstrachan Рік тому +7

    I use streetview so much for pre-planning deliveries to awkward locations in city centres, seeing where I can park, which way to approach from, where the actual entrance is for deliveries (Google will usually assume you're the customer and take you to the front door)... don't know how my colleagues in Germany do it!

    • @asbestosfibers1325
      @asbestosfibers1325 Рік тому

      The way it has always been done.
      Delivery isn't new.
      This technology is.

  • @mirelcosminbitoc9816
    @mirelcosminbitoc9816 Рік тому +4

    As a truck driver , google street view is an importal tool for me. Helps me search in advance companies , and see entry points , parking spaces and other info.

    • @TheGrinningViking
      @TheGrinningViking Рік тому

      Obviously not.

    • @mirelcosminbitoc9816
      @mirelcosminbitoc9816 Рік тому

      Satellite helps , but street view gives you more indepth view of the street and entry.
      For example at around 100 km before destination there is a crossroad. Where i have 2 roads that can lead me to the same company.
      One of them can save me like 30 km.
      I can enter on street view and see if there are truck restriction specifically for that road at the point of entry. Like seeing the actual sign on the road.
      A thing that is not possible with satellite.
      Driving a 17 meter 40 tone semi-truck is not like driveing a small car.
      Gps navigations with truck parameters depend on information provided by the road administration , and with more then 7 years of international experience driving through europe , i can tell you that that information is innacurate alot of times.
      I can see if there is a sign with paid parking or maximum duration of parking see where the entry for loading is at a company with 3 entry points (visitors , trucks loading , trucks unloading ).
      Form an idea if i can fit through a tight curve at some point.
      As a turist , i dont need that with a 4 m long and a 2.1 meter wide small car , but as a truck driver is a tool for me.
      I loaded here in France 45.785631,5.491675
      Maison Bonnard , 4 palets of whine , and looked up the road before arriveing , informed my company to check if 40 tone truck like mine has ever loaded at that location. And to make them take responasibilty in case of anything.
      End result , it can be made , but not without hard work and haveing experience at the weel. Had to try 3 times to fit the truck and trailed at a very tight curve , because it had cement side rails that i cannot cut with a 17m truck.
      The other option was a restricted road for 9m lenght.

  • @carlos-ju7ce
    @carlos-ju7ce Рік тому +11

    Thanks for the information. I've been trying to plan my itinerary for a road trip into the EU for next month and couldn't understand why I couldn't see anything in Germany.
    I use Streetview in my job too...saves me sometimes having to drive hundreds of miles to look at the exterior and accessibilty to some of our branches

  • @therrealsteeevo
    @therrealsteeevo Рік тому +4

    I once heard that the media coverage and bad publicity for Google was also related to the negotiations about the "Leistungsschutzrecht" in the same period.
    The publishers were able to demonstrate their power to Google.

  • @Peleski
    @Peleski Рік тому +2

    I guess times have changed, but I myself was surprised at my Czech cousins' concern about past places, and events that may have happened, when discussing ancestry locations, like houses in villages that appear now on Streetview

    • @szymonbaranowski8184
      @szymonbaranowski8184 Рік тому

      every country interest would be to create own street view focusing on tourist locations to promote worldwide while letting other places alone
      best in cooperation with other countries to promote jointly between each other
      on a free noncommercial platform pro bono and not selling data to foreign evil and not
      charitable corporations

  • @aboomer420
    @aboomer420 Рік тому +2

    goes to show what a small group of people uniting can accomplish, whether that is for good or bad

  • @Rubafix989
    @Rubafix989 Рік тому +12

    There are a lot of interesting points against private companies collecting data. I think it's fine as long as the data is entirely public, and that the company pays its taxes in the country.

    • @alexwyler4570
      @alexwyler4570 Рік тому

      That is a different mindset! Maybe Europeans companies obey laws. Otherwise, you should assume the company will do whatever it wants to make money, the people are NOTHING. It is all about the money grab for the company. They will apologize after, throw a penny in the air and keep doing whatever they need to do to make money. I would love to live in a place where companies are ethical and moral and do what is best for the people and the communities.

  • @trauby3620
    @trauby3620 Рік тому +7

    Thank you for the interesting video! I know that you are mostly correct with the statement, that no new images have been added, but interestingly enough in my home region (south of Stuttgart) it's a bit of a different situation. There, a couple of years ago, the local city councils and municipalities actually hired a private company to do the streetview images for them. If you want, you can check it out. Just look at Reutlingen or Tübingen and some of the immediate surrounding villages and cities.

  • @Quasihamster
    @Quasihamster Рік тому +2

    I remember the city of Cologne providing forms to its citizens in which they could request for their homes to be pixelated. They just needed to fill in the street adress, prove to the city they actually live there, and the city would then forward all those forms to Google. The result was, many of the more wealthy neigbourhoods sent in so many pixelation requests that StreetView abandoned them altogether. Also, one single tenant is enough to get the whole building pixeled, meaning many of the biggest and best known apartment buildings were also blurred. UniCenter, AXA-Haus, what we all have here.

    • @szymonbaranowski8184
      @szymonbaranowski8184 Рік тому +1

      great way to locate properties worth robbing

    • @telocho
      @telocho Рік тому

      What if the requester moves out, did they in Cologne also come up with a process to un-pixellate if the next person has no objection? And then again when the one after that has objection again? From my point of view, the city does not have a say on pixellating anyway, the facade of my house is in public domain so no-one, including me, can have it pixellated.

    • @Quasihamster
      @Quasihamster Рік тому

      My guess it, it stayed this way. There were some pixelated houses on Google, that in reality, have been demolished in the meantime. @@telocho

  • @jsalsman
    @jsalsman Рік тому +2

    Meanwhile in California, Google Maps history data is a common law enforcement subpoena request for all kinds of crime investigations.

  • @ludovica8221
    @ludovica8221 Рік тому +1

    As a housebound disabled person Google streetview is my only opportunity to see other countries and places- so I wish it was even wider spread

  • @PatrickBijvoet
    @PatrickBijvoet Рік тому +4

    Funny, my street in the Netherlands is difficult to reach for cars that do not belong there. (Non-residents or couriers or visiters etc). So, inspired by your video, I took a look. And what I tought, nor Google, Nor Apple documented my street. There are only satelitephoto's from above. Very interesting and nice video Matthias!

  • @lewisinho
    @lewisinho Рік тому +3

    Very well made video Matthias, impressive from a channel of your size. Keep up this high quality and i can see your channel taking off in the near future :)

  • @acaya
    @acaya Рік тому +52

    When I moved to Germany I had to use Maps and Street View all the time and immediately wondered why the pictures were so damn old, and why there were so few with Streets View. I just thought Germany was very slow and old fashioned with some things, like the way they hate using a credit card😂 Apparently there is a reason! Very interesting video

    • @GuyHeadbanger
      @GuyHeadbanger Рік тому

      Credit card... We hate them. Most Germans hate being indebted to someone. And when there is no more cash, how do you pay for a present for your wife, when you would like it to be a secret, how much you payd? Without cash, how can you pay for a gift for your wife without her knowing how much it cost? Or how to pay a street h**ker? Or for illegal substances, if you are into this?
      But most important: As there is no such thing like banking secrecy any longer in Germany, how could you prevent the government in snooping into you lifestyle? Oh, you bought the third bottle of booze this month, maybe you better not drive any longer! A package of cigarettes a day? Well, time to raise the charge for health insurance to you! You order books about things, the government does not like? You are probably a public enemy and should be carefully looked after by the Verfassungsschutz... (the Verfassungsschutz is a domestic intelligence agency, working directly on orders of the Minister of the Interior, so basically the government spies on the opposition.)
      For citizens of countries that never experienced totalitarianism or hyperinflation this may sound delusional and stupid, but knowing, that Germans refer to the government as "father state" may help to understand us.

    • @flitsertheo
      @flitsertheo Рік тому

      Don't tell me they associate credit cards with the coupons for buying a new Volkswagen Beetle in Nazi times.

    • @hzunasdfgbciw
      @hzunasdfgbciw Рік тому +10

      Early credit cards had severe security issues. Well, they didn't have any security at all. So most Germans preferred to use EC cards, which already had a PIN and could be given out of hand. And EC transactions are free of cost.

    • @Ashorisk
      @Ashorisk Рік тому +6

      credit cards also means that a middleman is doin something in a transaction that works totally fine without him (and no, that service is not for free).

    • @sagichdirdochnicht4653
      @sagichdirdochnicht4653 Рік тому +2

      Come to think of it, I should have used Google Street View, when I was on vaccations. Could have helped a lot. But the Idea just never came to me, because the Service basically doesn't exist here and you kinda forget, it is a thing elsewhere.

  • @fadelive7913
    @fadelive7913 12 днів тому +1

    Fuc, I missed the street view car after 14 years in my street💀

  • @JanR1995
    @JanR1995 3 дні тому

    The fun part is: Bing and other local companies have their alternative to street view without any problem.

  • @tobyk.4911
    @tobyk.4911 Рік тому +5

    So the question is now probably, after you have informed the city of Ratingen about the photographing of their streets and buildings by Apple: Is Ratingen now sending Apple a bill of fees for the authorized use of their streets?

  • @MyTv-
    @MyTv- Рік тому +8

    Actually I find it refreshing and a very healthy reaction! Right or wrong in the particularly issue. We do let big companies all to easily getting away with violating personal privacy.

  • @Marian87
    @Marian87 Рік тому +12

    Google maps and Street view are among the best services the internet has.I took a trip to Istanbul last year and went everywhere on foot, google, maps, street view, etc was invaluable. I easily navigated the huge ancient city during day and night without ever asking for directions or getting lost. That is an incredible thing. It's useful for navigation and preservation. I also often look up stuff and share images of my local area and wish that street view had existed before my town had being utterly ruined by the Communists in the 50s and 60s. My home town is relatively small and was also relatively poor so there weren't many people taking photos everywhere and there's little coherent footage of how the town used to look. I can't imagine what privacy has to do with seeing PUBLIC spaces in PUBLIC. I can see the town and house on videos such as yours. My apartment building and the house of my parents are clearly visible on streetview along with everybody elses, I haven't seen any negative consequences. There were no big waves of break ins, or such things, it just made easier to locate things.

    • @CordeliaWagner
      @CordeliaWagner Рік тому +6

      OMG. How awfull to ask someone for directions. In a country you travel to to get to know the culture. Interacting with local people is such an inconvenience.
      Imagine back than people had paper maps and found their way!!!

    • @Marian87
      @Marian87 Рік тому +11

      @@CordeliaWagner we still interacted, on our terms, but not being forced into awkward confusing discussions with strangers that don't know English well is great. Asking for directions is not culture and being stressed out about finding some place or getting lost is not something I enjoy in the limited free time I have. Why stop at a few decades ago, Imagine back when people had no maps and almost no one spoke any foreign languages!!! Wasn't that romantic?

    • @FuriendlyWolf
      @FuriendlyWolf Рік тому

      @@CordeliaWagner Found the german boomer who is against anything "new" and who is afraid of change in general

    • @jessali_
      @jessali_ Рік тому

      @@CordeliaWagner You sound like an old person with the worst kind of boomer mentality smh.

    • @olgahein4384
      @olgahein4384 Рік тому +2

      @@Marian87 Ah yes, 'a few decades ago when people had no maps and almost no one spoke any foreign languages'. I think you have a typo there, you probably meant to write 'millenias' instead of decades. I learned my first foreign language over 30 years ago in first grade and my last foreign language (the 5th one) about 15 years ago. I may be slightly above average, but here in Germany being multilingual is not uncommon and in german universities it's the bare minimum.

  • @AniMageNeBy
    @AniMageNeBy Рік тому +1

    Or as they say here: "A storm in a glass of water." All panic and paranoia a decade ago for basically nothing, and now no-one even raises an eyebrow.

    • @you2be839
      @you2be839 Рік тому

      Not exactly "for basically nothing" because the issues they threw at Google's Street View are still valid today, except now they've decided it's not a major issue, although they made it a major issue 13 years ago!

    • @AniMageNeBy
      @AniMageNeBy Рік тому

      @@you2be839 Indeed. Making their previous paranoid efforts to ban it basically for nothing. The issues turn out to be non-issues. At least if one takes the premise that any "issue" is something one *does* care about (otherwise what's the point of calling it an issue, if no-one thinks it's an issue?). One can argue the points that they raised are still there, but those points are no issues anymore - which was my point.
      Also... I don't think many of the points raised had a valid basis to begin with. As the vid itself points out, it's perfectly legal to take photographs by anyone, on the public roadway. So why wouldn't google be able to do the same? Why was Apple allowed, and not Google? Just like in the US, there is NO expectancy of privacy in public places. So the fact they suddenly expected it from Google and no-one else, is bizarre to say the least.

  • @charisma-hornum-fries
    @charisma-hornum-fries 14 днів тому

    A late funfact. The Danish actor Nicolaj Coster-Waldau is the streetview photographer in Greenland. By foot in the small unreachable areas. He wanted to promote Greenland as he has a house in Southern Greenland with his family.

  • @thomaspe8338
    @thomaspe8338 Рік тому +4

    Irgendwie kann ich diese Form von "German Angst" verstehen. Ich selbst "stalke" dort oft, wer wo wohnt, wenn wer Instagram-Post etc. von sich zu Hause posten. Allerdings ehr weil Detektivarbeit liebe, als kriminelle Energie dahinter. Von daher kann ich voll verstehen, wenn sich wer vor mir schützen möchte ;)
    Außerdem beobachte ich hier in der Eifel immer noch so eine Art Neidgefühl, dass Leute gucken möchten, was anderer haben, dass sie selbst nicht haben. Die Streetview-Kamera hat den Vorteil, dass sie so hoch ist, das man damit schön über Zäune mit Sichtschutz gucken kann.
    Weiterhin würde ich sogar behaupten, dass Streetview hier in der Nähe zu Belgien und Holland bestimmt für die Planung von Einbrüchen genutzt werden würde..
    Dir ein schönes Wochenende!
    Thomas

    • @Quotenwagnerianer
      @Quotenwagnerianer Рік тому +7

      Unsinn. Ich plane meine Einbrüche mit Photogrammetrie. Da sehe ich alles in 3D und muss mich nicht auf die Straßenansicht verlassen. ;)

    • @TMAX500WHITEMAX
      @TMAX500WHITEMAX Рік тому +1

      Blödsinn. Der Grund ist, wie immer bei Fortschritt, der mächtig beschränkte geistige Horizont der konservativen Missgeburten. Das Pack kann seit Jahrhunderte nur verhindern und bringt absolut nichts auf die Reihe, was auch nur ansatzweise was positives enthält. Asoziale Egoisten mit dem geistigen Horizont eines Pferdes mit überdimensionierten Scheuklappen.

    • @Exgrmbl
      @Exgrmbl Рік тому

      Naja, kriminelle Energie ist oft auch nichts anderes als Detektivarbeit. Aber das ist ja an sich kein Argument für oder gegen etwas, unzählige Technologien lassen sich in der Richtung missbrauchen.

  • @the_slurp_kinghansen5936
    @the_slurp_kinghansen5936 Рік тому +3

    wow this is amazing!! the editing IS PERFECT

  • @Moochie007
    @Moochie007 Рік тому +7

    I live in Australia but was born in Germany and was disappointed when I found out that I wasn't able to see where I was born (or any other place I wanted to see). The objections people have had towards this feature don't make much sense. After all, there's nothing to stop any would-be burglar from jumping in their car and cruising to any street they might want to see. It's much more sensible to install a decent security system with lots of cameras, particularly hidden cameras, and advertise the fact in your front window - such systems aren't all that expensive and will serve as a good deterrent to anyone who values their freedom. Our system caught someone in our house - the police were notified, and the culprit was caught a few streets away attempting a similar stunt at another property. The few items he'd stolen from us were eventually returned, pretty much in the same condition as when they had been taken. I hope Germany has a change of heart about Street View, so old expatriates like me can replenish some memories before they vanish completely from my mind.

    • @coover65
      @coover65 Рік тому

      I was born here in Australia but lived in Germany for a few years back in the late 1970s. Was disappointed in not being able to see my old house in street view. A visit back a few years ago revealed that not much had changed in the town.

  • @maxfi878
    @maxfi878 Рік тому +1

    What's a funny coincidence is that the city Ratingen mentioned in this video is where popular youtuber and streamer Rainbolt was captured on Street View.

  • @pilkjaer
    @pilkjaer Рік тому

    Tyvm for this video! I didn't even know that removing my house from the street view was even possible. Now request was sent. I have nothing to hide but at the same time, it's none of anyone's business what car I drive, was I at home at that time and what color of curtains i have in my kitchen.

  • @oyuyuy
    @oyuyuy Рік тому +4

    No matter where you stand on the subject, it's always fun to hear about mega-companies getting screwed over!

    • @isomochyn1
      @isomochyn1 Рік тому

      It's not really google losing out though, it's local people who would find the feature useful, potential tourists and local businesses, I tend to book large brand hotels when travelling through Germany and avoid anything small or local as I don't have the ability to look at the hotel and area before hand.

    • @oyuyuy
      @oyuyuy Рік тому

      @@isomochyn1 It definitely hurts Google.

    • @isomochyn1
      @isomochyn1 Рік тому

      @@oyuyuy Google relies on ad revenue, most of the data they use for earning money was still collected. Nobody was stopping using googles services because some backwards germans were scared of a camera. Unless you can show how google lost anything on this I'm going to say they lost nothing.

  • @MatthiasSchwarzerEnglish
    @MatthiasSchwarzerEnglish  Рік тому +138

    Thanks for watching! Here's more you might like:
    ▪ Why the Windows XP meadow no longer exists: ua-cam.com/video/-M-6YCHIJtU/v-deo.html
    ▪ Weird Border: Is this Germany or the Netherlands? ua-cam.com/video/jATA_9A-fWE/v-deo.html
    ▪ The sad last Days of a German Ghost Town: ua-cam.com/video/WWBgCnRwGqc/v-deo.html

    • @HorstMichel-mh7gv
      @HorstMichel-mh7gv Рік тому

      Weit vorne! Danke dafür.

    • @jonass9347
      @jonass9347 Рік тому +2

      We made geoguessr to easy is my takeaway.

    • @micosstar
      @micosstar Рік тому

      thanks for producing!

    • @lagrangewei
      @lagrangewei Рік тому

      it right for germany to oppose google because those data can be used to train AI. it is foolish to give a company so much power and help them have better control of your country. I wish my country had such foresight, now it is impossible to remove those data on the internet...

    • @nnnnnn3647
      @nnnnnn3647 Рік тому

      Germany and Austria are open-air museums of Europe. Now that the automotive industry is switching to electric, it will mean the end of the dominance of German manufacturers. They will be like Nokia. He can't write software, and he can't understand the new client.

  • @AKKK1182
    @AKKK1182 Рік тому +3

    Living under soviet occupation really wasn't only a german thing.

  • @TheAnimeist
    @TheAnimeist Рік тому +1

    Note, how the politicians all voiced concern over the privacy of their own homes. Nothing about the privacy of the homes of the people they are to represent.

  • @bladdnun3016
    @bladdnun3016 18 годин тому

    Every German chemistry student knows that the "i" in Elschenbroich is a Dehnungs-i, so its pronounced Elschenbroch, with a long "o".

  • @miristtotallw
    @miristtotallw Рік тому +4

    I find it disturbing that no one seems to care about wether or not a huge tech company collects all this data about a place you live in.
    I see the benefits, of course, but I'm still against it. And I'm not old, in fact I was in primary school when it happened and only learnt about this in my teenage years, so my family didn't care about it back in the days either.
    When I talked with someone who was an au pair in the US we went to Google Street View and she showed me the house where she stayed. It was quite shocking for both of us how much you could actually see of the area, the garden, the house itself, etc.
    I know that it doesn't bother many people but to me this feels bizarre. And just because this data isn't used for something harmful now doesn't mean it won't be used that way in the future.
    Data protection and privacy are very important even if you have "nothing to hide". And the fact Apple just said 'Fuck it' and took/released all those photos anyway with no protesting at all is unbelievable.

  • @UraFlight
    @UraFlight Рік тому +2

    Well made video. I’m agree with those people from small village. Privacy is the privacy. Here in UK 🇬🇧 lost of streets where Google car is not allowed to drive . Most of these areas are where rich people live.

  • @shodanki3736
    @shodanki3736 Рік тому +4

    The Problem with Apple is if you do not have a Apple device you are simply not aware if they have this kind of Service.
    :)
    Google is everywhere and "easy" to use on every device for Apple you need as far as I am aware of an Apple device so you can not check as a non-apple user what they have on you ;)
    other than sending an email.
    I think this is the main point of why not many people actually send a denial even if they care they do not know.
    so long

  • @thegreatgabe7229
    @thegreatgabe7229 Рік тому

    Nobody is talking about this, this smaller channel is making a high quality video that a big UA-camr would make. Nice Job!

  • @Kkubey
    @Kkubey 17 днів тому

    When the new street view came out here, I first found that in front of a nearby school two teenage girls were not pixelated (both half-asian with black hair somehow, while all others in the group were blurred as intended) , there was a family that actively "acted" for the camera too down the road. I reported the image in front of the school and they fixed it hours after, later I discovered that they have redone that entire part of the street from the school to the place where the people acted up, the same month. Seemingly on a bike.

  • @reargiro5102
    @reargiro5102 Рік тому +6

    Ich finde das soo sympathisch! Danke für eine weiter tolle Geschichte!

  • @OdhisOdhiambo
    @OdhisOdhiambo Рік тому +8

    Danke. Klasse Story. War mir neu obwohl ich den Streetviewstreit damals mitverfolgt hatte. War zwiegespalten. Und jetzt ärgere ich mich, z.B. aufm Ergometer, über diese Technikfeindlichkeit...und radele weiter durch alle anderen Streetview-Länder.

    • @macdaniel6029
      @macdaniel6029 Рік тому +1

      Technikfeindlichkeit ist wichtig. Die Welt ist viel zu modern geworden.

    • @Scanix90
      @Scanix90 Рік тому +3

      @@macdaniel6029 wenn man immer weiter seinen Lebensstandard aufgeben möchte kann man Technikfeindlich sein. Zu empfehlen ist das nicht.

    • @macdaniel6029
      @macdaniel6029 Рік тому

      @@Scanix90 Das siehst du völlig falsch. Digitales Leben verringert den Lebensstandard drastisch weil man dann nur ein digitaler Sklave des kleinen Bildschirms in der Hosentasche ist. Wirklich freies und unbeschwertes Leben ist nur analog möglich. Das Maximum an sinnvoller Innovation hatten wir bereits in den 90ern erreicht, an der Schwelle bevor jeder ein Handy hatte.

    • @jessehachey2732
      @jessehachey2732 Рік тому

      @@macdaniel6029😂 what an absurd take!

    • @macdaniel6029
      @macdaniel6029 Рік тому

      @@jessehachey2732 Nope.

  • @Judymontel
    @Judymontel Рік тому +1

    Well, one of the explanations music historians have about why Stravinsky's Rite of Spring caused a literal riot at it's first performance in Paris, and was totally and conventionally and accepted a year later is the impact of newness, or lack of familiarity.
    But regardless of any hypothetical reasons, this is a fascinating story - thank you!

  • @Canadagraphs
    @Canadagraphs Рік тому +1

    RIP Blurmany. As of today, they started removing the old coverage in preparation for adding the new coverage.

  • @klaus.rudat.1969
    @klaus.rudat.1969 Рік тому +8

    Endlich mal ein Englisch was selbst ich verstehe. Ohne Möchtegern-ami-slang, ohne Genuschel, ohne Kaugummi-kau-aussprache.
    😉

  • @SamHarrisonMusic
    @SamHarrisonMusic Рік тому +13

    I think this is awesome :) Nobody consented to Google's mapping, well done for some people for standing up to something everyone else took as inevitable. It doesn't matter if you agree or not, German people have a right to object to it.

    • @user-sn8oe5sb1b
      @user-sn8oe5sb1b Рік тому

      Because they don't need your goddamn consent. Do you call people ahead and ask for permission to look at their houses before you walk through a particular street? Do you close your eyes and look down as you pass by if you don't obtain such permission? It's a public place, there is NO expectation of privacy, you can walk, look, and take pictures of whatever the hell you want.
      The authoritarian nightmare is one where you're not allowed to do something so obvious and talk and take pictures of public places, not one where you can.

  • @TheOzelot11
    @TheOzelot11 Рік тому +6

    I am German and I hate this type of German fear of new things. I'd really like to have Street View and I hope this time the debate doesnt spiral out of control again. I also hope that Google stays under the radar this time, because the political climate right now is much worse and this seems like the perfect opportunity for populists to exploit and hinder German digitalization again.

    • @patriarch79
      @patriarch79 Рік тому

      I am German too and no one! will take pictures of my house or garden, never. I don't trust these data collecting company's. Deine Meinung, meine Meinung, der Antrag für erneute Verpixelung ist bereits raus

    • @flitsertheo
      @flitsertheo Рік тому

      I have the impression that Germans rather fear *old* things returning.

    • @TheOzelot11
      @TheOzelot11 Рік тому +3

      @@patriarch79 :/ Ich finde es echt schade, wenn Leute so denken, zumindest in größeren Städten. Ich persönlich liebe Street View um mir Orte und Läden anzuschauen bevor ich irgendwo hingehe. Bei privaten Häusern auf irgendwelchen Dörfen oder Wohnsiedlungen interessiert es mich aber zugegebenermaßen eher wenig.
      Ich glaube aber trotzdem nicht, dass dadurch die Gefahr von Einbrüchen oder sonst etwas dramatisch steigt. Wenn jemand bei dir einbrechen will, dann wird der nicht unbedingt über Google Maps schauen. Ich hab zumindest noch keine Statistik dazu gesehen. Ich kann aber das generelle Misstrauen diesen Konzernen schon verstehen und bin auch nicht dafür, dass man die komplett unreguliert lässt. Ich denke einfach, dass in diesem Fall der Nutzen deutlich höher ist, als die Kosten.

    • @maxmustermann2223
      @maxmustermann2223 Рік тому

      @@TheOzelot11 Bei mir ist es eher das angesprochene Misstrauen diesen Konzernen gegenüber (sie fahren ja aber auch mit Verpixelung am Haus vorbei). Wenn ich an das heimliche Tracken von WLAN Netzen zurück denke, frage ich mich, was alles einfach noch nicht ans Licht gekommen ist. Bei Google, etc. darf man nicht vergessen, dass der Dienst zwar kostenlos ist, die Firmen damit aber trotzdem verdienen. Die Daten gehören der Firma und sind am Ende Teil einer Strategie mit Werbung Geld zu verdienen. Würde Open Street Map die Daten aufnehmen, hätte ich keine Probleme damit. Bei kommerziellen Unternehmen jedoch schon und das nicht aus einem Bauchgefühl raus, sondern weil es ja schon Zwischenfälle gab.

    • @raketensven3127
      @raketensven3127 Рік тому +1

      Street view ist halt maximal unnötig. Man hat doch alle Informationen, die man braucht, in der Kartenansicht. Man braucht sich nicht vorher etwas auf street view angucken, man geht einfach hin. Und du kannst auch nicht von dir auf Andere schließen, mit genug krimineller Energie kann man den Service sehr wohl zum Auskundschaften benutzen. Wo genau sind die Lichter? Wo die Kameras? Etc. pp. Welche "Kosten" entstehen uns denn, wenns kein street view gibt? Du fütterst Google nur mit Daten, die machen Kohle damit und der Nutzen erschließt sich mir Null.

  • @nobodynoone2500
    @nobodynoone2500 Рік тому +1

    I think its great to not have street view. I feel it harms the rights of people to be private. Sad to see Germany moving backwards.

  • @DivineMisterAdVentures
    @DivineMisterAdVentures Рік тому +1

    Yes, man you are right, to mimic my lovely Berliner muti-in-law dialect of English. That International Communism business was a nightmare that continued uninterrupted from the late 1920's. Freedom and privacy are inseparable to that memory.

  • @salepien
    @salepien Рік тому +4

    What is notable in all these discussions is that there very rarely is a voice talking about why they street view SHOULD take all that data. I think there lies the truth of it at the time only a minority were vehemently against it but an even smaller minority was actually really for it. (And some form of data protection in the form of blurring people, license plates and potentially whole houses actually may have had an actual majority among people who made up their minds).
    Even until today I have never personally met a person complaining about lacking usability of street view (and the things lacking about internet service x are a regular topic in at least one of my closer groups).
    I personally have never needed street view for anything useful. It is involved in my life in the form of geoguesser.