Usage Limits: “For-Profit” Sites?
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Jeff Conrad
May 16, 2012, 6:28:46 PM5/16/12
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The page on Usage Limits at https://google-developers.appspot.com/maps/documentation/javascript/usage refers to quotas for “for-profit” Web sites, and further states that non-profit organizations are exempt from these quotas. Giving these words their common meanings, this would seem to ignore sites that are neither “for profit” nor operated by non-profit organizations, and which probably constitute a fairly substantial fraction of all sites. Is “for-profit” really intended to mean “any site not operated by a non-profit organization”? If so, it would be less confusing if that were simply stated.
Chris Broadfoot
May 21, 2012, 10:43:20 PM5/21/12
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Hi Jeff,
No, "for-profit" in this case does not mean "not a non-profit organisation". See this FAQ entry:
"Non-profits and applications deemed in the public interest (as determined by Google at its discretion) are not subject to these usage limits. For example, a disaster relief map is not subject to the usage limits even if it has been developed and/or is hosted by a commercial entity."
Regards
On Thu, May 17, 2012 at 8:28 AM, Jeff Conrad <jeff...@gmail.com> wrote:
The page on Usage Limits at https://google-developers.appspot.com/maps/documentation/javascript/usage refers to quotas for “for-profit” Web sites, and further states that non-profit organizations are exempt from these quotas. Giving these words their common meanings, this would seem to ignore sites that are neither “for profit” nor operated by non-profit organizations, and which probably constitute a fairly substantial fraction of all sites. Is “for-profit” really intended to mean “any site not operated by a non-profit organization”? If so, it would be less confusing if that were simply stated.
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Jeff Conrad
May 22, 2012, 5:12:33 AM5/22/12
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Chris,
I probably oversimplified it a bit. Much depends on what is meant by “in the public interest”; if this requires something closely related to a disaster-relief map, it seems a fairly narrow exception. And how does one determine whether an application is in the public interest? Does one simply post the application and hope that there will be no complaint?
I’ve read the FAQ (and several other pages that discuss the same topic). One issue is that descriptions vary. In some cases, there are references to “for-profit” or “commercial” sites; in others such as the FAQ, there are no qualifiers—the reference is simply to “Web sites and applications using each of the Maps API,” or “your site,” or similar. In any event, “for-profit” doesn’t appear to really mean “for-profit,” so its use invites confusion. Dropping the qualifiers would at least eliminate the invitation, and probably address 90% of the problem. Had I not seen the qualifiers, both on several pages to which one can get following links from the ToS and developer resources and in many articles and blog entries that followed the announcement of limits late last year, I’d probably never have raised the issue.
There is also a question of what constitutes a “nonprofit.” I was told that it was a 501c3 [sic], with no exceptions. This seems at odds with the FAQ as well as the normal definition of “nonprofit” In the US, it’s is a state term; in California, we have three general classes. The US Internal Revenue Code has 29 categories that are exempt from taxation; 5 qualify for tax-deductible contributions. I assume, of course, that the US Internal Revenue Code doesn’t count for much in your part of the world. It’s probably not possible to cover every situation, but the stated usage limits should at least be clear and consistent, which they currently are not.
This forum probably isn’t the place to sort this out, but unfortunately, there doesn’t seem to be an appropriate forum. Perhaps someone from Google could pass this on to the folks who do deal with such issues.
Jeff Conrad
I probably oversimplified it a bit. Much depends on what is meant by “in the public interest”; if this requires something closely related to a disaster-relief map, it seems a fairly narrow exception. And how does one determine whether an application is in the public interest? Does one simply post the application and hope that there will be no complaint?
I’ve read the FAQ (and several other pages that discuss the same topic). One issue is that descriptions vary. In some cases, there are references to “for-profit” or “commercial” sites; in others such as the FAQ, there are no qualifiers—the reference is simply to “Web sites and applications using each of the Maps API,” or “your site,” or similar. In any event, “for-profit” doesn’t appear to really mean “for-profit,” so its use invites confusion. Dropping the qualifiers would at least eliminate the invitation, and probably address 90% of the problem. Had I not seen the qualifiers, both on several pages to which one can get following links from the ToS and developer resources and in many articles and blog entries that followed the announcement of limits late last year, I’d probably never have raised the issue.
There is also a question of what constitutes a “nonprofit.” I was told that it was a 501c3 [sic], with no exceptions. This seems at odds with the FAQ as well as the normal definition of “nonprofit” In the US, it’s is a state term; in California, we have three general classes. The US Internal Revenue Code has 29 categories that are exempt from taxation; 5 qualify for tax-deductible contributions. I assume, of course, that the US Internal Revenue Code doesn’t count for much in your part of the world. It’s probably not possible to cover every situation, but the stated usage limits should at least be clear and consistent, which they currently are not.
This forum probably isn’t the place to sort this out, but unfortunately, there doesn’t seem to be an appropriate forum. Perhaps someone from Google could pass this on to the folks who do deal with such issues.
Jeff Conrad
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