Google's "unlimited" photo and video storage sounds like a fantastic idea! Until you realize that, as with all of Google's products, the "unlimited" storage has to be paid for somehow.

In Google's case, this is done by giving Google a license to use YOUR photos as they see fit (https://policies.google.com/terms?hl=en&gl=ZZ#toc-content):

> When you upload, submit, store, send or receive content to or through our Services, you give Google (and those we work with) a worldwide license to use, host, store, reproduce, modify, create derivative works (such as those resulting from translations, adaptations or other changes we make so that your content works better with our Services), communicate, publish, publicly perform, publicly display and distribute such content. The rights you grant in this license are for the limited purpose of operating, promoting, and improving our Services, and to develop new ones. This license continues even if you stop using our Services (for example, for a business listing you have added to Google Maps). Some Services may offer you ways to access and remove content that has been provided to that Service. Also, in some of our Services, there are terms or settings that narrow the scope of our use of the content submitted in those Services. Make sure you have the necessary rights to grant us this license for any content that you submit to our Services.

Google's entire business is "operating, promoting, and improving our Services, and developing new ones", so it suffices to say that their usage is not so "limited". As far as I can tell, there are no terms for Google Photos that narrow the scope.

Apple's iCloud service is very different in this regard (https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/icloud/en/term...):

> You acknowledge and agree that Apple may, without liability to you, access, use, preserve and/or disclose your Account information and Content to law enforcement authorities, government officials, and/or a third party, as Apple believes is reasonably necessary or appropriate, if legally required to do so or if Apple has a good faith belief that such access, use, disclosure, or preservation is reasonably necessary to: (a) comply with legal process or request; (b) enforce this Agreement, including investigation of any potential violation thereof; (c) detect, prevent or otherwise address security, fraud or technical issues; or (d) protect the rights, property or safety of Apple, its users, a third party, or the public as required or permitted by law.

> Except for material we may license to you, Apple does not claim ownership of the materials and/or Content you submit or make available on the Service. However, by submitting or posting such Content on areas of the Service that are accessible by the public or other users with whom you consent to share such Content, you grant Apple a worldwide, royalty-free, non-exclusive license to use, distribute, reproduce, modify, adapt, publish, translate, publicly perform and publicly display such Content on the Service solely for the purpose for which such Content was submitted or made available, without any compensation or obligation to you.

The first paragraph is Apple saying that they can show the FBI your iCloud account, which is already a known quantity with almost all cloud storage providers (except E2E encrypted ones). The second says that Apple only uses your content if you choose to share it with people, and then, only for the purpose of sharing.

Maybe you don't care that Google has this kind of access to all your photos and videos - after all, it already does that with your GMail - but for a lot of people (myself included) this is a dealbreaker.