Google has the ability to change the rules when it likes

[charles cawley]

This will not effect any of us but it is a reminder that Google could charge for anything it likes when it likes.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-1552305

[kendalcottages]

I think Charles meant this link...?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-15523050

[charles cawley]

Thanks.

[gam]

Not a worry thankfully as I don't anticipate ever causing 25,000 map views a day. However, there is one upcoming Google change that will affect many of us (but probably not you Charles*).

It has been reported that in the interests of "privacy" Google is to begin encrypting searches that people do by default. A by-product for the change to SSL search is that referrer data will no longer be available i.e. you won't be able to see how your site was found through Google. You'll still know that someone came from a Google search, just not what the search was. Apparently "some" data will still be available through Webmaster Tools, though it's not clear what exactly.

Only Google.com is affected at the moment - and only for users signed into Google. But it is quite likely to roll out to other regions I'd have thought. We'll have to wait and see.

* The good news for you Charles is that Advertisers (AdWords) will still get the data. As the article I read says, strange sort of "privacy" where if you pay them money, you get the data.

[kendalcottages]

It puts at least one of our websites in jeopardy, so to speak...

When not wearing my KC hat, we run http://www.aardvarkmap.net which is a free service to help people create custom Google Maps for their own sites, without needing any knowledge of how to do this. We can also provide certain overlays with information (eg. tourist attractions).

Last month it was doing over 10,000 map views per day. Still some way short of the 25,000 figure, but it does have an ongoing trend of increasing as more and more people use it...

The site doesn't make money so in time I guess we'll have to work out how it might do so...

[CSE]

That BBC article seem like news that is about a month old.
Here is goolge's page about how to get the API:
http://code.google.com/apis/maps/signup.html

* There are currently no limits on the number of maps you may generate per day using the Maps API. Limits will be introduced on October 1st, 2011. Refer to the FAQ for details.

Click on the FAQ and it says:

Web sites and applications using each of the Maps API may at no cost generate:

1. up to 25,000 map loads per day for each API
2. up to 2,500 map loads per day that have been modified using the Styled Maps feature

If your application exceeds these usage limits you must respond in one of the following ways in order to continue using the Maps API in your application:

http://code.google.com/apis/maps/faq.html#usagelimits