Google launches Street View in India six years after restrictions – TechCrunch

Google is relaunching Street View, the Google Maps feature that allows users to explore an area through 360-degree panoramic street-level images, in India roughly six years after the South Asian nation restricted the feature over national security concerns.

The company said it has partnered with local giants Genesys and Tech Mahindra to relaunch the service, which is currently available in 10 Indian cities. The company expects to roll out the feature to 50 Indian cities by the end of the year. This is the first time, company executives said at a press briefing in New Delhi Wednesday, Google has partnered with third-party firms for Street View.

“Starting today, Street View will be available on Google Maps with fresh imagery intensity in India is covering 150,000 kilometers of roads that’s actually been ingested into Google Maps,” said Miriam Karthika Daniel, VP – Maps Experiences at Google, at the event. “So I’m really thrilled about how people will start using Street View and in India and see how we have suddenly everyday lives.”

Miriam Karthika Daniel, VP – Maps Experiences at Google, discussing the relaunch of Street View in India at an event in New Delhi. Image credits: Jagmeet Singh / TechCrunch

Karthika Daniel, who joined Google last year from Amazon, said the company is opening up access to Street View API to local developers. “This will enable them to integrate with mapping experiences and all of their products and services going forward,” she said.

This is a developing story. More to follow…