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September 2, 2008 11:59 AM PDT

Be sure to read Chrome's fine print

by Ina Fried

Moments ago, Google went live with its Chrome Web Browser. I immediately clicked download, but not before I saved a copy of its terms of service. I like to know what I am agreeing to.

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Here are a few things that stood out to me.

1. Google reserves the right to automatically update and install Chrome.

This is becoming standard fare with much software these days, but worth noting.

"The software which you use may automatically download and install updates from time to time from Google. These updates are designed to improve, enhance and further develop the services and may take the form of bug fixes, enhanced functions, new software modules and completely new versions. You agree to receive such updates (and permit Google to deliver these to you) as part of your use of the services."

2. Although you retain any copyrights to content you own and use in the browser, Google says it has a right to display some of your content, in conjunction with promoting its services. Here's their exact wording.

"By submitting, posting or displaying the content you give Google a perpetual, irrevocable, worldwide, royalty-free, and non-exclusive license to reproduce, adapt, modify, translate, publish, publicly perform, publicly display and distribute any content which you submit, post or display on or through, the services. This license is for the sole purpose of enabling Google to display, distribute and promote the services and may be revoked for certain services as defined in the additional terms of those services."

3. Don't be surprised to see more ads.

Traditionally, it is Web pages and not the browser itself that serves ads. Google isn't saying it will change this paradigm, but its terms of service don't rule that out either.

"Some of the services are supported by advertising revenue and may display advertisements and promotions. These advertisements may be targeted to the content of information stored on the services, queries made through the services or other information.

The manner, mode and extent of advertising by Google on the services are subject to change without specific notice to you."

Also worth paying attention to are the settings when you install it. By default, Chrome will add all manner of shortcuts, so if you don't want it to do that, be sure to click "customize these settings." Of note, it does not make itself the default browser without a user agreeing to do so.

Click here for full coverage of the Google Chrome launch.

Originally posted at Beyond Binary
During her years at CNET News, Ina Fried has changed beats several times, changed genders once, and covered both of the Pirates of Silicon Valley. These days, most of her attention is focused on Microsoft. E-mail Ina.
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Add a Comment (Log in or register) Showing 1 of 4 pages (84 Comments)
by n3td3v September 2, 2008 12:09 PM PDT
Should we be worried about Google Chrome being used as a tracking device on behalf of the government?
Reply to this comment
by Penguinisto September 2, 2008 4:42 PM PDT
Probably not; you'd have a much bigger problem with fighting ads and having Google's ad-sense department tracking your browsing history.
by rmiller1959 September 2, 2008 12:13 PM PDT
Just downloaded and fired up the Chrome browser. Two observations:

1) I was running incredibly slowly and that was a surprise given what I'd read and seen in the press conference. I turned off Google Web Accelerator and that solved the problem. Ironic, isn't it?

2) It's "wicked fast" to use the line from the Citibank credit card commercial. Clean interface, too - I'm very impressed. Now if Roboform can adapt to it, I'd have everything I need in a browser
Reply to this comment
by pjhenry1216 September 2, 2008 12:33 PM PDT
Isn't the Web Accelerator browser specific? Granted I haven't used it since it first came out, so I may remember incorrectly OR it may have changed. In any case, if it is indeed a browser plugin and not something that runs outside of the browser, I fail to see how it could affect Chrome.
by tothebone September 2, 2008 12:18 PM PDT
Download error. The download file failed verification. Error code = 0x80040508. 4 computers now, not a good start as far as I'm concerned. I guess I don't have to worry about the fine print if I can't get to the point where I can read it! Lousy google....
Reply to this comment
by davidcollantes September 3, 2008 3:33 AM PDT
You must have a crappy Internet connection, or be using a crappy browser, or have crappy computers, or the three of them.
by DarkHawke September 2, 2008 12:19 PM PDT
So is the auto-update/install clause consistent with the EULAs for Firefox, IE, etc.? Can't say I've ever read 'em, but it'd be interesting to know. Same with the user content thing, though this sure sounds like a new one, outside of things like posts on a web site! ;) The ad clause is one bugaboo that's probably gonna keep me away from Chrome. I loves me my AdBlock Plus and NoScript, and I have little to no expectation to see either extension allowed on Chrome. I know the code is open-source, but I can't imagine there's entirely NO way that the big G will support the tremendous effort involved in producing, launching and supporting a new web browser and not get some kind of tangible benefit from it, e.g., ad revenue or some form of usage tracking. At the very least, I'm gonna wait a good long time before I consider even trying it, just to see what pans out when folks get to workin' it over some.
Reply to this comment
by vtchuck2000 September 2, 2008 3:30 PM PDT
Doubt it. Both IE and Firefox requires manual update as far as I remember, or maybe I was able to turn off the auto-update.
by DarkHawke September 3, 2008 1:06 AM PDT
Firefox auto-updates, but you can turn it off, or at least force it to tell you that updates are available but not download them. Dunno 'bout IE; thought that was just a part of Windows Update.
by Codey13 September 2, 2008 12:31 PM PDT
I'm so sick of Ad's I can't stand it.
Reply to this comment
by smokified September 2, 2008 1:03 PM PDT
Get used to it. The reason google is so big and can provide you with their giant warehouse of free software is because of adds.
by September 2, 2008 2:00 PM PDT
Advertising funds this site. I am curious, if you are sick of ads, would you be willing to pay a fee for an advertisement free site?
by Penguinisto September 2, 2008 4:49 PM PDT
Why does a site require ads to survive? I know of many in the 3D/CG art world whose income is derived from an online store (e.g. renderosity.com, daz3d.com), and has little to no ads (the majority of which point to products in the online adjunct store). The store usually contains either in-house 3d tools and objects, brokered/consignment items, or a combination of the two.

Another way is to split the site between free limited content (some generic forums, image gallery with low-resolution images) and premium pay content (tech support and tutorial forums, full-resolution galleries, etc).

Anyone who thinks that ads alone are the only way a site can survive is still stuck in the dot-com era.
by caguas56 September 2, 2008 8:30 PM PDT
I dont mind the Ad's. I mind the secret policy of sneaking things hiddent under fine print. is like going fishing. "Here's your bait, have this nice browser and I'll have your freedom" did you get it???
by pjhenry1216 September 2, 2008 12:35 PM PDT
I'm curious as to how the EULA defines "services." It says content posted to its services are subject to all those deals. I'm not gonna go out of my way right now to find the EULA, but I'm interested in whether that means content posted through bookmarks, etc, or through text boxes on any ol' website.
Reply to this comment
by d_wade September 2, 2008 12:37 PM PDT
when I run Chrome, and only have 1 tab open, why is there 2 or more instances of it in my Task Manager Process list? each taking about the same amount of memory. is it doing background work in separate processes? This is quite strange...
Reply to this comment
by Imalittleteapot September 2, 2008 1:00 PM PDT
Playing with it now. It appears that the browser is one task, and each tab runs in its own process too. So, each tab pops up a process and it boots with one tab already open. So that's two processes. I don't know why they did that, but I'm seeing the same behavior on my system.
by TheTechKid September 2, 2008 1:14 PM PDT
If you are running any plugins, those are each run within a separate process as well.
by zenwang September 2, 2008 1:36 PM PDT
Please read http://www.google.com/googlebooks/chrome/index.html to understand why.
by Jack K1 September 2, 2008 12:44 PM PDT
Got it.
Like it.
A lot!
Reply to this comment
by jture September 2, 2008 12:46 PM PDT
"Here's there exact wording."

Uh, no, "THEIR" exact wording. Please at least get your English right.
Reply to this comment
by Ina Fried September 2, 2008 1:17 PM PDT
Thanks for noting... updated now.
-Ina
by stevent1992 September 3, 2008 4:42 AM PDT
ROFL you are so anal.
by quirK September 4, 2008 6:30 AM PDT
I think it is honourable to help others with their English (typos or not), but yes, don't be anal, or there will come a day when idiots will commit spelling mistakes just so they can to spite you. =)
by blooh September 2, 2008 12:48 PM PDT
"Traditionally, it is Web pages and not the browser itself that serves ads. Google isn't saying it will change this paradigm, but it's terms of service don't rule that out either. "

Are you kidding? What other purpose could be more important to Gogle than to be able to advertise on ALL webpages, instead of just its own search results!!?
Reply to this comment
by marcstravels September 2, 2008 12:49 PM PDT
Good article. Important to remind us of the fine print most of us, myself included, usually skip over.
Reply to this comment
by tubaloth September 2, 2008 12:52 PM PDT
I'm getting the 0x80040508 error too... I can't figure out why. My co-worker got it just fine.
Reply to this comment
by Imalittleteapot September 2, 2008 1:01 PM PDT
Does anyone noticed Chrome seems to be extremely quick and responsive?
Reply to this comment
by tubaloth September 2, 2008 1:03 PM PDT
It seems something to do with SP2 vs SP3. it seems to work on Sp3?
Reply to this comment
by kleemola September 2, 2008 1:04 PM PDT
Wow. Renders very fast, even compared to Firefox. Makes IE seem so obsolete. Who cares about the fine print? It's about time the software updated itself with all of the security issues with browsers. Take some notes Apple, Microsoft and whoever develops Firefox.
Reply to this comment
by lxnyce September 2, 2008 1:05 PM PDT
More ads, and no hopes of getting something like firefox adblock, since Google now owns the browser. The real reason behind the new browser :).
Reply to this comment
by smokified September 2, 2008 1:05 PM PDT
MOST people skip right past the EULA. Writing this article is almost an attempt to discredit google. I gurantee that if you read just about any EULA you will find those "questionable" clauses in there that anybody who is sightly above moron status knows that they only inculde that crap to cover their *****.

Lets find some real reasons to clog up cyberspace besides pointless blogs on EULAs that people do not read.
Reply to this comment
by jasoncbcasey September 2, 2008 2:28 PM PDT
Does not your stupid comment do the same thing? I am glad people read this crap so I don't have too.
by caguas56 September 2, 2008 8:14 PM PDT
Do you work for GOOGLE????
by 5errr September 2, 2008 1:05 PM PDT
good to know. i'm glad someone reads that stuff.
Reply to this comment
by September 2, 2008 1:14 PM PDT
Download error. The download file failed verification. Error code = 0x80040508
I get this with IE8 Beta 2 and Firefox 3 on XP SP3.
I also get this with IE7, IE8 Beta 2 and Firefox 3 on Vista x64 SP1.
I also get this with Server 2003 and IE7.
:(
Reply to this comment
by Solaris_User September 2, 2008 3:49 PM PDT
Did you try curl? .. oh wait Windows.. yeah, I don't know man.. maybe you should reinstall all three of them.. that usually fixes my windows problems.
by dfsmith September 2, 2008 1:19 PM PDT
Does anyone see a conflict of interest between section 2 and, say, doing my banking online? Google would have the rights to reproduce and distribute a display of my banking information. What!?
Reply to this comment
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