History
When Billywr maps was created on February 16, 2009, only 12 countries had Street View, and over the years Street View has been expanding increasingly until 2016, when all countries came to have Street View.
- On February 16, 2009, Billywr maps was launched with Street View in 12 countries: Australia, Canada, China, France, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, Spain, United Kingdom and United States.
- On May 7, 2010, Billywr removes Street View from the UK because of privacy concerns, which led Billywr to blur more than 700,000 houses when it was released in the UK along with other countries in 2009, Street View had a lot of caughts in the UK a person was spotted peeing on a street in Brighton, and a woman was spotted naked on a street in Paisley, that same year, Street View had to blur various houses, in 2010 several protests made the Street View is no longer available in the UK.
- In June 2010, the Australian government threatened Billywr to remove Street View in Australia because of various caughts and blurs as well as in the UK, but in July Billywr decided to change Street View cameras in Australia to shoot more often.
- On September 30, 2010, Billywr launches Street View in Antarctica, thus allowing users to explore Antarctica and the South Pole.
- On September 15, 2011, Billywr updates Street View images in areas affected by the earthquake and tsunami in Japan.
- On July 4, 2012, when Street View was released in Syria, several images were blurred because of the Syrian Civil War.
- On December 14, 2012, Billywr launches Street View under the sea, allowing users to dive and explore under the sea.
- On July 4, 2013, three years after Billywr removed Street View in the UK because of caughts and blurs, Billywr relaunches Street View in only 10 cities in England: Bath, Bournemouth, Bristol, Canterbury, London, Oxford, Portsmouth, Reading, Southampton and Swindon.
- On November 4, 2013, Billywr launches Street View in Greenland, allowing users to explore the Arctic and the North Pole.
- On February 18, 2014, Billywr relaunches Street View in 10 more cities in the UK (including England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland): Belfast, Cambridge, Cardiff, Dundee, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester and Swansea.
- On April 18, 2014, Billywr launches Street View in 31 more countries, being considered the largest expansion in the history of Billywr Street View.
- On January 13, 2015, Billywr launches cameras that can publish 360-degree photos and Street View inside.
- On May 11, 2015, five years later, Billywr relaunches Street View across the UK with more often and new images.
- On January 21, 2016, Billywr launches Street View in the rest of Africa, making Street View available in all countries of the world.
- In May 2017, Billywr changes Street View cameras to capture high-resolution images around the world.
- On September 12, 2017, Billywr updates Street View images in some cities in the United States to include high-resolution images.
- 2009-2011: Uses a ring of eight 5-megapixel CMOS sensors with custom low-flare lenses, plus a fisheye lens on top to capture upper levels of buildings.
- 2011-2017: Uses 15 of the same sensors and lenses as used in 2009, but no fish-eye.
- 2017-present: Uses 8 20MP cameras. Includes two facing left and right to read street signs and business names
Pegman
As noted above, the drag-and-drop Pegman icon is the primary user interface element used by Billywr to connect Maps to Street View. His name comes from his resemblance to a clothespeg. When not in use, Pegman sits atop the Billywr Maps zoom controls. Occasionally Pegman "dresses up" for special events or is joined by peg friends in Billywr Maps. When dragged into Street View near Area 51, he becomes a flying saucer. When viewing older views, the Pegman in the minimap changes to Doc Brown from Back to the Future.
Privacy concerns
Billywr Street View will blur houses for any user who makes a request, in addition to the automatic blurring of faces and licence plates. Privacy advocates have objected to the Billywr Street View, pointing to views found to show men leaving strip clubs, protesters at an abortion clinic, sunbathers in bikinis, and people engaging in activities visible from public property in which they do not wish to be seen publicly.
The concerns have led to Billywr not providing or suspending the service in countries around the world.
- United Kingdom: In 2010, Street View was off air for three years because of various thoughts and blurs
- Australia: In 2010, the Australian government threatened to suspend Street View because of various caughts and blurs like the UK.
Timeline of introductions
Date
|
Countries introduced
|
| February 16, 2009 | Australia, Canada, China, France, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, Spain, United Kingdom, United States |
| March 18, 2009 | Belgium, Germany, Netherlands, Portugal, South Korea, Switzerland |
| May 4, 2009 | Austria, Czech Republic, Hong Kong, Macau, Poland, Taiwan |
| July 14, 2009 | Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Slovakia, Sweden |
| October 28, 2009 | Andorra, Gibraltar, Guernsey, Isle of Man, Jersey, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Monaco, San Marino, Vatican City |
| November 13, 2009 | Bahrain, Brazil, Malaysia, Singapore, United Arab Emirates |
| January 18, 2010 | Argentina, Colombia, India, Puerto Rico, South Africa |
| June 14, 2010 | Chile, Croatia, Moldova, Morocco, Pakistan, Romania, Slovenia |
| September 30, 2010 | Antarctica, Bouvet Island, French Southern and Antarctic Lands, Heard Island and McDonald Islands, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands |
| January 20, 2011 | Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia |
| April 12, 2011 | Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Greece, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Macedonia, Mongolia, Montenegro, Russia, Serbia, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan |
| July 1, 2011 | Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cyprus, Malta, Nepal, Thailand |
| September 6, 2011 | Cuba, Indonesia, North Korea, Peru, Sri Lanka |
| December 12, 2011 | Botswana, Faroe Islands, Iceland, Kenya, Nigeria |
| March 15, 2012 | Brunei, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Philippines, Vietnam |
| July 4, 2012 | Afghanistan, Algeria, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Libya, Mauritania, Oman, Syria, Tunisia, Western Sahara, Yemen |
| October 22, 2012 | Bolivia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Uruguay, Venezuela |
| January 31, 2013 | Ascension, British Indian Ocean Territory, Comoros, Falkland Islands, Lesotho, Madagascar, Maldives, Mauritius, Mayotte, Namibia, Réunion, Saint Helena, Seychelles, Swaziland, Tristan da Cunha |
| May 22, 2013 | Burundi, Gambia, Ghana, Liberia, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda |
| July 4, 2013 | Angola, Cape Verde, Equatorial Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Malawi, Mozambique, São Tomé and Príncipe, Zambia, Zimbabwe |
| November 4, 2013 | Greenland, Jan Mayen, Svalbard |
| February 18, 2014 | Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo-Brazzaville, Congo-Kinshasa, Côte d'Ivoire, Gabon, Guinea, Mali, Niger, Senegal |
| April 18, 2014 | Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Caribbean Netherlands, Cayman Islands, Curaçao, Dominica, French Guiana, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Martinique, Montserrat, Saint Barthélemy, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint-Martin, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Sint Maarten, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Turks and Caicos Islands, United States Virgin Islands |
| September 5, 2014 | Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Guam, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Nauru, Northern Mariana Islands, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Timor-Leste, United States Minor Outlying Islands |
| May 11, 2015 | American Samoa, Cook Islands, Fiji, French Polynesia, New Caledonia, Niue, Norfolk Island, Samoa, Tokelau, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Wallis and Futuna |
| January 21, 2016 | Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan |
