Introducing the Google APIs Terms of Service and an update to Code Labs

By Adam Feldman, APIs Product Manager

The Google APIs Terms of Service

Beginning today, most of our APIs use a single Terms of Service. We have rewritten these terms from the ground up with the goals of making them concise and easier to understand.Our intent is to simplify, not to make dramatic functional changes.

For all the APIs that share this single Terms of Service, you won’t need to study a whole new document, although some have brief specific Additional Terms.  In this rewrite, we have removed over 125,000 words from the combined previous terms, resulting in less to read and faster access to your favorite APIs.  Over time, other APIs will be migrated to the new terms.  Please review each API’s documentation to see its terms.

The new Terms of Service is another step in making Google APIs more technically consistent by sharing common infrastructure such as the Discovery service, the APIs Explorer, and the APIs Console.

Removing the Code Labs Label

In order to reduce confusion we're removing the Code Labs label from APIs on code.google.com. The Google Labs program has wound down. APIs formerly in Code Labs will now use the standard header in their documentation. The APIs themselves are unchanged.

Adam Feldman is a Product Manager, focusing on all of Google's APIs and making sure Google provides the best possible platform to developers.

Posted by Ashleigh Rentz, Editor Emerita