Question Google Earth Copyright

[Spacethingy]

In another thread, I've hit the question of whether it is legal to use Google Earth imagery for Orbiter surface tiles or not.

A license summary says personal use only, :nono: to commercial uses.
http://earth.google.com/support/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=21422

Orbiter certainly isn't commercial, but it's not personal either. :idk:

Help!

 

[deltawing777]

In another thread, I've hit the question of whether it is legal to use Google Earth imagery for Orbiter surface tiles or not.

A license summary says personal use only, :nono: to commercial uses.
http://earth.google.com/support/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=21422

Orbiter certainly isn't commercial, but it's not personal either. :idk:

Help!

According to the link on first line it says:
"This article explains that:

You can use Google Earth imagery for personal use, but cannot sell it to others"

So would it be safe to say it is ok for use in orbiter,just don't sell it? And orbiter is free

 

[halcyon]

Commercial = for profit.
Since you're not using it for profit, it's fine.

 

[deltawing777]

Commercial = for profit.
Since you're not using it for profit, it's fine.

Exactly..so lets get the world scenery started woot!

 

[Hielor]

Based on fuzzy memories of an FSX addon that did basically the same thing:

-If you package the Google Earth imagery and distribute it, that's not okay.
-If you make a utility which allows people to get Google Earth imagery into the sim on their own, that's okay.
-If you distribute a utility which loads Google Earth imagery into the sim on the fly, that's a gray area leaning toward "not okay" (and is irrelevant for Orbiter anyway since you can't do that).

 

[liber]

http://earth.google.com/support/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=21422

We're flattered to hear that you're further incorporating Google Earth into your online world. You can personally use an image from the application (for example on your website, on a blog or in a word document) as long as you preserve the copyrights and attributions including the Google logo attribution. However, you cannot sell these to others, provide them as part of a service, or use them in a commercial product such as a book or TV show without first getting a rights clearance from Google.

as long as you preserve the copyrights and attributions including the Google logo attribution.

I think this is important?!

 

[deltawing777]

http://earth.google.com/support/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=21422

We're flattered to hear that you're further incorporating Google Earth into your online world. You can personally use an image from the application (for example on your website, on a blog or in a word document) as long as you preserve the copyrights and attributions including the Google logo attribution. However, you cannot sell these to others, provide them as part of a service, or use them in a commercial product such as a book or TV show without first getting a rights clearance from Google.

as long as you preserve the copyrights and attributions including the Google logo attribution.

I think this is important?!

So the way I see it, so as long as nobody is making any money off of using the images and they aren't loosing out on any money its ok as long as you give them credit. IE Uploaded Worldscenery.zip to orbiter hanger
"This is a world scenery file I made using google earth blaa blaa blaa"
They got thier credit they are NOT loosing money because its a free sim and its not packaged WITH orbiter and used a external program IE winzip,winrar to extract and put it into a free sim. Just give them credit when you upload to orbiter hanger done!

 

[Hielor]

So the way I see it, so as long as nobody is making any money off of using the images and they aren't loosing out on any money its ok as long as you give them credit. IE Uploaded Worldscenery.zip to orbiter hanger
"This is a world scenery file I made using google earth blaa blaa blaa"
They got thier credit they are NOT loosing money because its a free sim and its not packaged WITH orbiter and used a external program IE winzip,winrar to extract and put it into a free sim. Just give them credit when you upload to orbiter hanger done!

Not quite. You need to keep any logos and watermarks they put on the terrain.

 

[Izack]

Why am I imagining orbiting an Earth coated with gray 'no image data available for this region' marks...?

 

[Loru]

Why am I imagining orbiting an Earth coated with gray 'no image data available for this region' marks...?

Or Google Earth watermarks all over the place

 

[Wishbone]

It is a means to put Google on every square inch of terran surface... and then to claim it... (have I said I'm anti-Google at heart?)

 

[C3PO]

Or Google Earth watermarks all over the place

Would you rather have Microsoft watermarks instead? :lol:

 

[4throck]

This is not as simple as displaying the Google logo or not.
As long as the images are displayed from the web (no cache or downloads) there's no problem. But if you save the images and redistribute them (as we do) then it's not ok. This might bring unwanted attention to Orbiter which of course is free.

So I'd say this is matter best dealt with low profile. For example, don't indicate on OH description were the tiles came from (you can use "popular mapping service").

 

[orb]

This is not as simple as displaying the Google logo or not.
As long as the images are displayed from the web (no cache or downloads) there's no problem. But if you save the images and redistribute them then it's not ok.

How does it work with a word document, which I don't believe would use an image from the web (is there a Google Earth plug-in for Word?), but rather embedded in the document?:

You can personally use an image from the application (for example on your website, on a blog [highlight]or in a word document[/highlight]) as long as you preserve the copyrights and attributions including the Google logo attribution.

 

[Hielor]

So I'd say this is matter best dealt with low profile. For example, don't indicate on OH description were the tiles came from (you can use "popular mapping service").

At that point you'd be violating the "preserve the copyrights" aspect of the TOS, and you'd be in even more trouble.

 

[fort]

I don't always understand that absolute fashion for google images. On some places google is interesting. On others, Bing/Virtual Earth is better ( try to see how is Google on London and how much work you will have to do to make coulours corrections between places apparently coming from different satellites photography; try to see the Heathrow airport from Google and how the coulours are far from the one's coming with Orbiter level 11/14 textures ). And if one do not want the watermarks, there is one or two good programs that can give to a Bing/Virtual Earth image the coulours of Google's one ( or the mix that one want ), if it's what one is searching for.

 

[Jamesep3]

Well seeming no one from google has come along and complained to us I guess we are allowed to use the surface tiles. Until one of them comes along and tells us "you can't use our textures" who cares no ones told us to stop so why should we?:uhh: Besides how many other ways could we get surface tiles so easily and for free:yes:

 

[fort]

Besides how many other ways could we get surface tiles so easily and for free:yes:

As far i know, depending of how you work and what one want to do: five or six.

 

[Hielor]

Well seeming no one from google has come along and complained to us I guess we are allowed to use the surface tiles. Until one of them comes along and tells us "you can't use our textures" who cares no ones told us to stop so why should we?:uhh: Besides how many other ways could we get surface tiles so easily and for free:yes:

Yeah, that's not how copyright laws work.

 

[4throck]

Until one of them comes along and tells us "you can't use our textures" who cares no ones told us to stop so why should we?

If one of them comes it's OH that shuts down the next day. It's called a cease and desist letter.
And I work with Google imagery and products every day... so while I'm not one of them you can consider yourself warned Just kiding OK? But I do work in 3d modeling and heritage promotion using Google Earth (http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/search?uq=1166243199703387444023400&scoring=m).

Simply put, to protect the forum and Hangar site (because these posts and addon descriptions are indexed by Google itself...), specially the role of the site owners, we should not discuss any usage of the images other than what's indicated on the TOS.

That covers a print screen in a word document and of course your own personal use to place objects on a surface base. Also, no problem if you paint over the said images, therefore creating your own work.
But an addon that clearly indicates a TOS violation should not be avaliable. The administrators aren't forced to know were the images came from, BUT if it is on the description they should take it down.
I do believe that we have a forum rule preventing any discussion about pirate software, including indications about how to get it. Perhaps something similar might be needed in this case.


Imagine that instead of satellite imagery we were discussing a spacecraft mesh used in any addon.
Would YOU like to see YOUR mesh used in some render that ends up in someone elses portfolio, game, site, etc? It's not about the law, it's about respect for one's work.