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In my company we have developed an android application that uses Google Maps. specifically we use
import com.google.android.maps.GeoPoint;
import com.google.android.maps.MapView;
On very short notice this application will be demoed in China to a Chinese company, and I need to know if we need to replace the map API or not.
I have searched the Internet in home of finding a simple Yes or No answer if maps work or not but it's not clear to me.
I went to china and used maps in the summer och 2011, but shortly after it seams that maps was blocked. Then I read news that Google applied for a licence to provide map services in China bot no word if they got them or not.
If i narrow the search down to results from this year some people claim that it works other that it does not.
So are there any stack overflowers out there in China that can give me a conclusive answer?
I really don't have the time to replace the map API if do not have to
I live in Beijing, and I can assure you that Google Maps (and all its other services are available).
But what you need to take into consideration, is that traffic from inside China to the outside is far from stable : last week for example, gmail was very unstable, but it all went back to normal after a few days.
Look at China as a giant Enterprise network : sometimes DNS servers go down or the Great mighty firewall goes wrong ...
Also there are periods when the network is more bound to mess up : National holiday (October), Chinese New Year (around February) and last but not least : Communist party elections (in November this year). During these periods, they might decide to temporarily block some websites.
Also, different cities might have different firewall rules : what might work in Beijing, might not work in Shanghai (but this is very rare).
Google still has no map publishing license in China (at least as my latest info goes) It may well be that in the near future Google's Map services will be blocked.
A lot of Chinese websites, including ours, use Google's JS as well as their Service API's, Among them is Google's geocoding api.
in china, baidu (NASDAQ:BIDU) and sogou [the minor search engine, part of sohu (NASDAQ:SOHU)] both provided online maps and also APIs,
baidu’s map api home is http://dev.baidu.com/wiki/map/in...
sogou’s map api home is http://map.sogou.com/api/
actually, in china, as of now, the google maps api are still available now.
as from recent chinatech.us news,
Google China passed the annual inspection and got more opportunity to get online map business license
so, the 3 API are are and available.
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Since there is a new billing for the use of Google Places API and Google Places SDK, i'm looking to use a free alternative or an alternative with more interesting quotas before paying for these use cases :
Nearby Search (need to find restaurant)
Place Details
Autocomplete
Does anyone know such a solution ?
Thanks anyway
Here are some with at least free tiers:
MapBox has 50K pre transactions per month
MapQuest has 15K/mo
Here.com (formerly Bing Maps) has 250K requests per month.
and OpenCageData has a "free trial" with 2,500 requests per day, though it appears you have to sign up to find out what is meant by "free trial."
Also note that Google Maps still has a $200 monthly credit for each billing account, after the 1 year of free transition time:
For each billing account, a monthly $200 USD Google Maps Platform credit is available and automatically applied to the qualifying SKUs.
For each use of each API you can see in these tables a column called "$200 MONTHLY CREDIT EQUIVALENT FREE USAGE" which shows how much usage falls within the monthly free allotment. It's complicated and you have to go through the tables and compute how much of each service you think you'll need. However for many use cases you can still end up using these APIs free. For now, anyway.
As mentionned in the near-duplicate question What is a good, unlimited alternative to Google Places API?:
Foursquare Venues is a candidate.
Factual is also a candidate if your application is user-centric (they gradually suppressed the access to the Web-API)
Plus, you could add Facebook:
Facebook Places https://developers.facebook.com/docs/places/web; 500 requests a day
Algolia Places seems to be a very powerful tool (I have not tried it yet). And it does not depend on Google.
Current conditions include 1000 queries/day for free.
I'm using Google's API like Google Maps and Google Fit in my Android application and I'd like to know if they'd work in China.
And is there a way to test my app like it was in China? I tried looking for a free china vpn but didn't find anything.
Thanks!
Here's the answer from somebody that lived in China for 5 years.
Some Google Apis work, some Apis don't work and some Apis only work sometimes. It is very complicated to predict if they will continue working. China tries to block Google servers quite often.
Answering your question: currently Google Maps don't work in China and you'll have to use Baidu Maps or Bing Maps. Unless people are using a working VPN... in that case it will work.
From personal experience AstrillVPN is ok and should work 90% of the time if you want to test as if you were in China (but this might change with time) ;)
Simply stated, we have a considerable number of users who noticed that "reported map problems" do not update on the Android Maps API in a timely fashion.
For example, when a missing address, new road, or any other issue is submitted via the "Report a Problem" interface on the Desktop Google Maps, is seems to update on the desktop versions and the main Google Maps application for Android quickly. However, the map database used for the 2.0 API do not seem to receive these updates for a much longer period; updates can take many days or even weeks.
Our Android application is used by Emergency first-responders who spend a great deal of time driving to locations. Due to this, they routinely find incorrect information or new road development that they would like to submit and see reflected on our application, but historically, their updates only appear on the Maps App and the Desktop Maps.
I recognize that any user submitted errors must be validated by the Google team, but it appears that the Android API maps exhibit a substantially longer lag between updates than any of the other products. We are frequently asked by our clients why this is the case, and I don't have any answer.
Is there any API hook to allow API users to report errors to maps, or is there some other protocol that would be more effective here? These users are a great resource for map updates, and it seems odd that this ability is apparently missing from the API, unless it was omitted intentionally to prevent some sort of abuse?
Also, are there any general guidelines for the update process for map data on the Android API relative to the other products? Specifically, is there a time frame that users should expect to see their updates shown on the API maps, when errors are submitted via the Desktop maps?
We've been mitigating this by allowing users to overlay their own markers for updated roads, but obviously an updated map is the preferred solution.
Thank you very much.
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I'm developing an app which used google map API. Some feature of app are In-app purchases.
I've read ToS, in 9.1.2
9.1.2 Exceptions.
(a) Enterprise Agreement with Google. The rules in Section 9.1.1 (Free
Access, Public Access) do not apply if you have entered into a
separate written agreement with Google (such as a Google Enterprise
agreement) or obtained Google's written permission.
(b) Mobile Applications. (i) The rule in Section 9.1.1(a) (Free
Access) does not apply if your Maps API Implementation is used in a
mobile application that is sold for a fee through an online store and
is downloadable to a mobile device that can access the online store.
(ii) The rule in Section 9.1.1(b) (Public Access) does not apply if
your Maps API Implementation is an Android application that uses the
Google Maps Android API. (However, the rule in Section 9.1.1(b)
(Public Access) will continue to apply if your Maps API Implementation
is an Android application that uses any other Maps APIs, unless the
Maps API Implementation qualifies for the exception in Section
9.1.2(a) (Enterprise Agreement with Google).)
it means my app must be 100% free??.
I have 2 question now:
My app provide map view are free and some of other feature have fee, is this possible?
I'll use google map API but Geocoding from another provider. Is that ok?
From the FAQ:
Can I use the Google Maps API on a commercial website? As long as your
site is generally accessible to consumers without charge, you may use
the Google Maps API. For example, if your website is supported by
advertising, it likely falls within the Google Maps API Terms of
Service. If you charge people to place information on your map (e.g.
to list their homes for sale), but you display this information using
the Google Maps API on a free part of your site, you'll also meet the
Google Maps API Terms of Service.
However, not all commercial uses are allowed. For example, if your
site meets any of the following criteria you must purchase the
appropriate Google Maps API for Business license:
Your site is only available to paying customers. Your site is only
accessible within your company or on your intranet. Your application
relates to enterprise dispatch, fleet management, business asset
tracking, or similar applications. Remember, Google reserves the right
to suspend or terminate your use of the Google Maps API at any time,
so please ensure that you read the Terms of Service carefully.
And from exceptions:
(b) Mobile Applications. (i) The rule in Section 9.1.1(a) (Free
Access) does not apply if your Maps API Implementation is used in a
mobile application that is sold for a fee through an online store and
is downloadable to a mobile device that can access the online store.
The way I read this is that you may use the API for commercial purposes if you develop for an app sold for a fee. I highly doubt that any of this applies to in-app purchases, which Google does not explicitly reference.
PLEASE NOTE however that NONE of us will be able to give you legal advice. The Google team will not give you any legal advice either. You NEED to consult with a lawyer for full legal advice.
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I'd like to be able to implement this in an Android app, and I thought it was possible with the newest Google Maps API release, but I haven't seen much discussion on the topic. Ideally, you'd be able to download/cache maps for a certain region for later offline use. Is it only possible to do this via the Google Maps 5 application and not the API without violating the ToS? I know OpenStreetMap and others allow this, but I believe Google Maps still offers superior mapping and the most widespread usage.
Thanks in advance.
Downloading and caching the Google Maps assets is against the Google Maps API TOS.
Check the TOS section 8:
License Restrictions. Except as expressly permitted under the Terms, or unless you have received prior written authorization from Google (or, as applicable, from the provider of particular Content), the license granted to you in Section 7 is conditioned on your adherence to all of the restrictions in this Section 8. Under this Section 8, you must not (nor may you permit anyone else to):
8.2. copy, translate, modify, create a derivative work of, pre-fetch, cache, or publicly display any Content or any part thereof.
Is it only possible to do this via the Google Maps 5 application and not the API without violating the ToS?
Correct, though AFAIK it's not even physically possible with the API.
There are 3rd party Maps API-s which enable to do this, like Nutiteq maps SDK. Not with Google maps, as it is really against their ToS, but with Bing (with Enterprise license), OpenStreetMap (free) or other map sources.
Disclaimer: I'm developer of it.
You can try to use GoogleMapsRipper 2.0.4 from http://www.blueblackworks.com
GoogleMapsRipper is mapping software that allows you to download both satellite imagery, topographic and road maps from Google Maps, Bing Maps and OpenStreet Maps.
According this 10.1.3(b) you can do it temporally on mobile device.
This project implement it, I can't provide particular example but you can dig in into it coz it open-source.