Google's Streetview Seen As Culturally Insensitive In Japan

Jim O'Connell writes "Global Voices has a translation of an excellent open letter to Google by Osamu Higuchi, explaining that Street view is too invasive for Japanese traditional values when used in residential areas. Having lived here for ten years, most recently in an older residential area, I can attest to its accuracy — Living in such close proximity to your neighbors, it becomes necessary to 'not look' at everything that you might be able see from a place such as the street, where you may have a legal right to be. The cultural boundaries are simply different than those of the US."

It's called a fence.

[MBraynard]

Look into it.

Re:I thought Taboos applied to people not things.

[Anonymous Coward]

And Google is not run by people?

Of course Google isn't run by people. The company reached singularity years ago.

how do you say

[evwah]

how do you say "clod" in japanese?

Re:how do you say

[amrik98]

kuroddo

Re:how do you say

[evwah]

well then google is clearly full of Insensitive kuroddo!

Re:It's called a fence.

[Anonymous Coward]

did that, but planning laws specifically disallow a front fence where I live.

Try again.

Re:After living there...

[kestasjk]

No! You are outraged and disgusted!

Re:Japan respects privacy???

[Lord Lode]

It's also the country where they made the game Zelda, where Link just enters any house he wants...

Re:Same here.

[Dachannien]

On the net, we've evolved the ROBOTS.TXT for just this problem

I've found that the CURTAINS.TXT convention works pretty well in meatspace.

Re:Same here.

[Anonymous Coward]

I don't think the Government is wringing its hands behind closed doors about how it got Google to invade everyone's privacy. I think the only way you could have sounded worse is if Elvis and a cabal of hook-nosed shadows were behind it all.

Re:Same here.

[6Yankee]

I've found that the CURTAINS.TXT convention works pretty well in meatspace.

Meat curtains, eh?