Agreement concerning Google Street View

Bern, 17.12.2009 - On Wednesday, Google and Hanspeter Thuer, the Swiss Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner (FDPIC) came, against the background of the pending law suit against Google Street View, to an agreement.

Regarding the interim injunctions as requested by the FDPIC Google and the FDPIC agreed as follows:

1. Until the decision by the Swiss Federal Administrative Court has become final and binding Google agreed to not activate in its online service Google Street View as well as in other products any further pictures taken for Street View in Switzerland.

2. Google undertakes to accept a final and binding court decision rendered in the proceedings concerning Google Street View and is ready to implement it with regard to images recorded for Street View in Switzerland, if and to the extent that the award requests so.

3. Google shall remain entitled to undertake further camera rides in Switzerland. Such camera rides shall be without prejudice and are, in view of the potential outcome of the proceedings, undertaken at own risk. Google may use such camera images only for non-person-related processing within the Google group and products and may not activate the camera images on the Internet as set forth in clause 1.

4. Changing from a monthly information cycle, Google will new inform at least one week ahead in which districts or in the surroundings of which cities recordings shall be made.

5. The FDPIC herewith considers the purposes of the requested interim injunctions as reached and therefore shall withdraw the said requests with the Federal Administrative Court.

6. This agreement shall not effect the legal position of the parties in the pending main proceedings. 

Peter Fleischer, Google's Global Privacy Counsel: «We are pleased that we have come to this agreement with Mr. Thuer, under which we can continue taking photographs for Street View. However, we will not put online any additional images on Street View until the decision of the Federal Administrative Court.»

Hanspeter Thuer, Swiss Federal Data Privacy and Information Commissioner: «With this agreement the purposes aimed by the requested interim injunctions are fully reached. During the main procedures no further pictures will be published. The public will be informed in due course of any camera rides. In addition, Google commits to a final and binding Swiss court decision and to implement it also with regard to images, which have already been transmitted outside of Switzerland.» 

 


Publisher

Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner
https://www.edoeb.admin.ch/edoeb/en/home.html

https://www.admin.ch/content/gov/en/start/dokumentation/medienmitteilungen.msg-id-30822.html