Google has acquired ImageAmerica, a company that builds high-resolution cameras and uses them to take aerial photographs.

The search engine giant announced the move Friday on its LatLong blog about Google Earth and its other mapping efforts. It didn’t disclose terms of the deal.

“We’re excited about how ImageAmerica’s technology will contribute to our mapping services down the road,” Product Manager Stephen Chau said on the blog. “Since we’re in the research and development phase right now it may be some time before you see any of this imagery in Google Maps or Earth.”

Microsoft has revealed that its patent deal with Linspire doesn’t cover the new version of the GNU General Public License (GPL), the company’s latest effort to distance itself from the GPLv3.

Separately, Lindows said it will imminently release new versions of its flagship Linspire and Freespire products.

In a copy of the Linspire agreement published on Microsoft’s website, the company said specifically that the agreement doesn’t cover “any portions of products that comprise or include Foundry Products, Clone Products, GPLv3 Software or Other Excluded Products”