The question is not “is Google better or worse than average?” It’s: what is the risk of building an app on a Google API? The risk is high, and it’s not worth it. Their track record is abysmal. Sure, if you pick a random provider out of a hat, maybe Google is better. But if you look for a solid provider or better just build your own service instead of trying to glom onto someone else’s (someone with no real incentive to see your product succeed).

> Yeah, but that's not unique to Google. It's a valid concern with any API or service that you don't control.

As mentioned by others Amazon seems to have a policy along the lines of "APIs are forever".

That's really nice. Google could make the same pledge. They do well enough and will likely be around for a very long time.