Google drops claim to Chrome content

Posted on 4 Sep 2008 at 09:13

Google has revised the terms and conditions for use of its new Chrome browser, dropping the claim to rights over content submitted, posted or displayed using the software.

The search giant has removed a section that reserved certain rights to users’ content: “By submitting, posting or displaying the content you give Google a perpetual, irrevocable, worldwide, royalty-free, and non-exclusive licence to reproduce, adapt, modify, translate, publish, publicly perform, publicly display and distribute any Content which you submit, post or display on or through, the [Google] Services. This licence is for the sole purpose of enabling Google to display, distribute and promote the Services”

This was taken from Google’s universal Terms of Service and entitles Google to use anything — pictures, blog posts, forum contributions and the like — in its marketing material

Inevitably that drew criticism, and Google agreed that the terms needed changing.

“The legal terms for a specific product may include terms that don’t apply well to the use of that product,” Rebecca Ward, senior product counsel for Chrome, said in a statement. “We are working quickly to remove language from Section 11 of the current Google Chrome terms of service. This change will apply retroactively to all users who have downloaded Google Chrome.”

The revised terms reassert that the user retains all rights to their content.

“You retain copyright and any other rights you already hold in Content which you submit, post or display on or through, the Services.”

However, the universal Terms of Service remain in place for most if not all of Google’s other services, including Gmail and Docs.

Author: Simon Aughton

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