Why is this creating such a storm in the proverbial teacup? From the MapMaker TOS -- "By submitting User Submissions to the Service, you give Google a perpetual, irrevocable, worldwide, royalty-free, and non-exclusive license to "
See the non-exclusive part. You give Google a license, but you retain your copyright to do whatever you want to. You can turn around and give it OSM as well, or sell it Yahoo or Microsoft or whoever your preferred map making overlords are. What's the big deal? Google can turn around and sell it to TeleAtlas, and, if you have money to burn, you can buy the same data back from TeleAtlas. But, you will likely do so only because TeleAtlas will add something to *your* data -- presumably, data from other users such as you, or even some other value. Else, hey, don't buy it. Unless I am missing something, I see absolutely no problem. In any case, there is the all powerful capability for you to *not* give your data to Google in the first place. But, I don't see this any different from letting Google index my website. They index my website for free, and then it is available to anyone who cares... presumably even to TeleAtlas. And, if TeleAtlas adds "quality and richness" to its maps using data from me and thousands of other Google MapMaker users, the consolidated pot of value may be worth a lot more to me than the value of lots of scattered bits and pieces of information. I can choose to pay for it or not. If there is some legitimate concern, please educate me (us), but as is, I see no problem with Google MapMaker. On 6/30/08, Mike Liebhold <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Ah... now we know who will own the data that users gather using google > Map Maker: > > "Google Signs Five Year Map Agreement With Tele Atlas" > http://www.teleatlas.com/WhyTeleAtlas/Pressroom/PressReleases/TA_CT018846 > > " ...The agreement also gives Tele Atlas access to edits for its maps > from Google's community of users, whose suggested changes can help the > company further increase the quality and richness of Tele Atlas maps... " > > Map it today, give it to google, buy it back tomorrow from TeleAtlas. > That sounds simple enough. > > > > > > > SteveC wrote: > > What no mention of GMM on geowanking yet? And I was looking forward to > > the disucssion! > > > > http://www.opengeodata.org/?p=307 > > > > Best > > > > Steve > > -- Puneet Kishor http://punkish.eidesis.org/ Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies http://www.nelson.wisc.edu/ Open Source Geospatial Foundation (OSGeo) http://www.osgeo.org/ _______________________________________________ Geowanking mailing list [email protected] http://lists.burri.to/mailman/listinfo/geowanking
