Needless to say, this particular error was far from popular with local business owners, and it is a good thing that Google did the gentlemanly thing and apologized for the current situation. Google Maps has since reinstated the town name of Basingstoke on select browsers, although the BBC did report that for some users, it still remains blank. According to a spokesman for Google who also issued an apology from Google, “An engineer is quite literally putting Basingstoke on the map.”
I am quite sure that the attention brought about by this omission has clearly raised the profile or public awareness of Basingstoke that is located approximately 48 miles southwest of London, bearing an estimated population of about 84,275.