Historypin offers an Application Programming Interface (“API”) as one of its services. Using this tool, a software developer can directly connect to the Historypin data service using a computer or mobile application to exchange information. Using the API, a software developer might write an application that can do anything that they would normally be able to do using the Historypin.org website: query data about Historypin Contributed Content and under certain circumstances contribute more information in return. In all cases, a user of the Historypin API is bound by the same terms and conditions as all other users of Historypin services.

We provide the Historypin API as a free service to the community, just like our other websites and applications. However, because of the possibilities for abuse that arise from the use of bulk amounts of data, we do operate separate terms for the non-commercial and commercial re-use of this data. We understand that the exact definition of “commercial” can be hard to evaluate, so we would encourage you to contact us at hello@historypin.org if you have any concerns or questions.

Accessing the Historypin API

All Registered Users of Historypin are entitled to connect to the Historypin API. The primary endpoint for the API is at https://www.historypin.org/en/api/ and is documented at https://historypin.github.io/api-docs . To use the API you will need an API Key and API Secret, which you can get from your User Profile page on Historypin.org. More details on how to use the API Key and API Secret are available from the API documentation.

Versioning

The Historypin API is provided “as-is”, and like our other services subject to change as we continue to develop our platform. This may mean that our changes to the Historypin API will break your application.
Once the Historypin API has firm version numbers (v1, v2 etc), we will do our best to keep the signatures and responses to API calls consistent within that version, to give you more assurance that your development work will continue to work as expected.

Attribution and Clearance of Content

In all cases in which you use Historypin Contributed Data, we require that you attribute the content to the Historypin contributing user. In most cases, displaying the Historypin username with a link to the item or to the user’s profile will be sufficient.

Contributed Content is provided as-is, and has a variety of licenses attached, from the completely open to the completely restricted. We insist that you respect the copyright status of content within the Historypin.org platform, as indicated by the license selected by our users upon upload of material, which may require that in some cases you may need to perform additional clearing of rights associated with Historypin Items before you can use them. As reflected in the general Historypin Terms, the presence of a piece of user-contributed content within the Historypin environment does not represent either an endorsement from the organisation nor a blanket license to use the item regardless of its legal standing. And while much of the material within Historypin is licensed using a variant of a Creative Commons license, and thus explicitly supports re-use, you should consider carefully whether your particular application will provide access to material which the user has indicated could be restricted. If this is the case, you may need to contact the user themselves to confirm that you may use the content.

Non-Commercial Uses of Historypin Data

We are happy for you to use the Historypin API for non-commercial purposes, provided that the service you create is not substantially a copy of existing Historypin services, such as the Historypin.org website itself. We will make the determination on what services are “commercial” – in general, if you are charging money for access to your application or to content within it, we would consider your application to be commercial. Advertising-driven sites might or not be commercial. We’re happy to make a determination, so just get in touch with your idea.

Commercial Uses of Historypin Data

We permit commercial uses of Historypin Data only when you have been in contact with us and we have come to an agreement about your use of the Historypin Data. This may include the payment of a flat fee, the purchase of a support contract or a form of royalties, but of course, there are also commercial applications that we would love to support with no payment necessary. Even in cases for which no direct payment is made, we would like to establish a contract with you governing your commercial use of the Historypin API, confirming your acceptance of the Historypin Terms of Service and itemising clearly any requirements on either side.

Technical Support for the API

As a general rule we cannot provide much direct technical support for the use of the Historypin API, though we will will try to answer emails and other communications. If you would like a guaranteed level of technical support for the Historypin API, as well as access to our current technical roadmaps, we do have technical support contracts available. If you are interested in this, please contact us at hello@historypin.org for details.