CiviCRM Community Forums (archive)

I am trying to understand whether or nor using the Google Maps API as impemented for CiviCRM would be allowed under Google's Terms of Service. The maps are not displayed publicly so it would seem any use of it in CiviCRM is a violation. See http://maps.google.com/help/maps/getmaps/compare.html (free version).

Has anybody had a legal opinion about this? We are not a not-for-profit organization. We are a political party.

We do have a legal counsel but I'd like to see if anyone has come up against this before I contact him.

That's probably true. We are not using CiviEvent yet but plan to in the future. Right now the map link is only visible on the contact details page, which is not public.

But then:

(b) Public Access (No Firewall). Your Maps API implementation must not operate (i) only behind a firewall; or (ii) only on an internal network (except during the development and testing phase); or (iii) in a closed community (for example, through invitation-only access).

We are a closed-community

It gets worse, actually: 

10.1.1
(g) No Use of Content without a Google Map. You must not use or display the Content without a corresponding Google map, unless you are explicitly permitted to do so in the Maps APIs Documentation, or through written permission from Google. In any event, you must not use or display the Content on or in conjunction with a non-Google map. For example, you must not use geocodes obtained through the Service in conjunction with a non-Google map. As another example, you must not display Street View imagery alongside a non-Google map, but you may display Street View imagery without a corresponding Google map because the Maps APIs Documentation explicitly permits you to do so.

Implementing Yahoo Place Finder would be great:
http://developer.yahoo.com/geo/placefinder/
From what I've read of its TOS there is nothing to conflict with using it in CiviCRM.