Re: Mapping APIs for use in Cocoa app
Re: Mapping APIs for use in Cocoa app
- Subject: Re: Mapping APIs for use in Cocoa app
- From: Conrad Shultz <email@hidden>
- Date: Tue, 26 Oct 2010 08:28:12 -0700
Can you show where in the iOS API agreement this is stated? There would be many apps that violate it by using MapKit, I would think, if that is the case.
While certain activities (e.g. geocoding and route finding) have special restrictions, the controlling section would appear to be 10.4:
"Except as explicitly permitted in Section 7, you must not (nor may you permit anyone else to)... charge users or any other third party any incremental fee solely for the use of the Maps API Implementation, the Service, or the Content, unless you have entered into a separate written agreement with Google or obtained Google's written permission to do so (but if you are a consultant who creates or hosts Maps API Implementations for third party customers, you may charge such customers a fee for your consulting or hosting services)"
That certainly doesn't sound like it forbids all commercial applications, but then again I am not a lawyer (and this is not legal advice). I also note that you are evidently based in the UK, so there may be rules of which I am unaware.
That said, there are significant wording changes in the non-iOS terms (http://code.google.com/apis/maps/terms.html) that may well restrict commercial use. However, I get the impression that these are designed for web apps/sites, not desktop apps, so you might want to ask Google (developer relations, not the search engine).
In particular, I'm curious how they handle something like a free application that displays a pin on a map to show a house you have purchased. Such would not charge for access, but use is contingent on having paid an unrelated fee.
But this is now quite far afield from cocoa-dev.
--
Conrad Shultz
www.synthetiqsolutions.com
On Oct 26, 2010, at 3:10, Darren Wheatley <email@hidden> wrote:
> Hi,
>
> I'm building a Mac / iPad app that displays simple maps to the user (map with location pin, allowing the user to pan and zoom).
>
> This is pretty easy to do with Google Maps, but AFAIK the API Ts&Cs prevent use in a commercial application unless a Google Premier API licence is purchased (£Ks).
>
> The cost of this means I can't use Google Maps in my application.
>
> Can anyone suggest an alternative mapping API for my app please (or correct my understanding of the Google Ts&Cs if I'm wrong)?
_______________________________________________
Cocoa-dev mailing list (email@hidden)
Please do not post admin requests or moderator comments to the list.
Contact the moderators at cocoa-dev-admins(at)lists.apple.com
Help/Unsubscribe/Update your Subscription:
This email sent to email@hidden