Restaurant Owner Sues Google Over Maps Sabotage

The owner of a now-shuttered restaurant is suing Google because he believes an incorrect Google listing killed his business. According to the Guardian, Rene Bertagna, who owned the Serbian Crown in Virginia, attributes an inaccurate listing on Google Places to the "sudden decline in customers" he had in 2012. This forced him to lay off staff and close the restaurant's doors last year after 40 years in business. Wired writes that Google Places was "misreporting" the restaurant's hours: Anyone who Googled the Serbian Crown was incorrectly informed that it was closed on weekends. This proved to be a large problem for the restaurant which was "located off the beaten path" and had no walk-in traffic.

Bertagna's lawyer believes that "a competing restaurant sabotaged the Google Places listing to drive away the Serbian Crown's customers" and that Google could have done more to intervene. His theory might not be so far fetched: According to the Guardian, anyone with a Google+ account can submit a change to the details of a Google+ Local page, including modifications to information like the address and phone number. Google has released a statement saying that "the Serbian Crown should not be permitted to vex Google or this court with such meritless claims" and is hoping to have the lawsuit dismissed.

· Restaurant Owner Sues Google Over Maps Listing [The Guardian]
· How Google Map Hackers Can Destroy a Business at Will [Wired]
· All Lawsuits Coverage on Eater [-E-]