Just like buses on the high street in any town in the UK, you have to wait ages and then along come a bunch together, so it is with the Maps API TOS, which Google revised again today.
Clearly section 11 was an area of concern to the community, it is the section that balances legally what you as a map user submit and how Google may use your content. MIckey on the Geo Developers Blog gives an excellent explantion of the thinking behind the changes to this section.
I believe these changes improve the clarity of the TOS and will hopefully reduce the concerns expressed by some developers.
The new section 11 for reference is below…
11. Licenses from You to Google.
11.1 Content License. Google claims no ownership over Your Content, and You retain copyright and any other rights you already hold in Your Content. By submitting, posting or displaying Your Content in the Service, you give Google a perpetual, irrevocable, worldwide, royalty-free, and non-exclusive license to reproduce, adapt, modify, translate, publicly perform, publicly display and distribute Your Content through the Service and as search results through Google Services. This license is solely for the purpose of enabling Google to operate the Service, to promote the Service (including through public presentations), and to index and serve such content as search results through Google Services. If you are unable or unwilling to provide such a license to Your Content, please see theFAQ for information on configuring your Maps API Implementation to opt out.
11.2 Brand Features License. You grant to Google a nontransferable, nonexclusive license during the Term to use Your Brand Features to advertise that you are using the Service.
11.3 Authority to Grant Licenses. You confirm and warrant to Google that you have all the rights, power and authority necessary to grant the above licenses.
Written and submitted from home, using my home 802.11 network.
