A few updates to the Google Maps / Google Earth APIs Terms of Service
November 14th, 2014 | Published in Google Maps
Today we posted a few minor updates to the Google Maps / Google Earth APIs Terms of Service. These changes should impact very few developers and customers, but are designed to provide clarification for recently launched advertising-supported and connected APIs.
The changes are broadly as follows:
Advertising
- Similar to the Adsense Terms and Conditions, if you use an API that serves ads, you grant Google the right to index your site for the purpose of better ad targeting.
- A restriction on using Places API results to create or augment an advertising product.
Sign-in and cookies
- A restriction on obscuring the Google sign-in button, similar to the existing restriction on obscuring the Google logo and copyright notice.
- A clause that states certain APIs use cookies, and that developers using these APIs may be required by law to disclose such on their own site.
Other changes
- Clarifications on what sorts of use cases constitute asset tracking.
- Removal of references to specific data providers.
We continue to believe in providing a set of tools that help you meet your maps and location related goals, and these updates are designed to make the terms of our offering more clear and sustainable. We look forward to seeing what you build next!