Some observations about licensing on the example of the product Multifon (Megafon)
As is known from previous discussions: 1 , 2 , 3 Megafon has the “Multifon” service.
As part of this service, Megafon "Multifon" is invited to download a SIP phone to a computer and make a call.
So, put, run, look in the "About the program":
"It uses libavcodec.dll from the FFMPEG project under the GNU LGPL license."
Indeed, it is used - in the directory with the program we find libavcodec.dll. Distribution conditions for LGPL are respected.
And also we find two files crashrpt.dll and libetpan.dll. We will study them in more detail.
crashrpt.dll - project CrashRpt , released under the New BSD Licensewhere such lines are present:
Redistributions in binary form must reproduce the above copyright notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer in the documentation and / or other materials provided with the distribution.
What the translation means - when distributed in binary form, it must be accompanied by a warning about copyright and the current license. In Multiphone there is no separate file with a license, in the dialog "About the program" there is no required data.
libetpan.dll is a libetpam project , released under its own license with the following lines:
Redistributions in binary form must reproduce the above copyright notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer in the documentation and / or other materials provided with the distribution.
What the translation means - when distributed in binary form, it must be accompanied by a warning about copyright and the current license. In Multiphone there is no separate file with a license, in the dialog "About the program" there is no required data.
We dig a little deeper - in the file MegaFon \ MultiFon \ Themes \ MegafonNew.actheme the name is indicated - Bjorn Kaxe. A search on Linkedin.com indicates a person - who is currently working in a certain telepo.com , which is engaged in the development of softphones and other things.
Now questions:
1) Has telepo.com licensed the CrashRpt component from its owner?
2) whether the licensed companies telepo.com library libetpanfrom its owner?
3) Do Megafon fully own the situation regarding their product - Multifon?
Upd: added resume:
I agree, there is no perfection in the world. Multiphone is an additional service, a shell for SIP.
However, a situation is possible where a third-party developer without looking will turn on a well-known component under the GPL license. And here a situation is possible when the authors of the component go to the end and demand reimbursement or compliance with the GPL license - after all, Megafon is a fairly large company.
If such a situation had happened with Multifon, then this could have led to the need to publish the codec codec GIPS, which probably violates the agreement between telepo.com and gipscorp.com. The result would be a legal conflict. And since there is probably a clause in the agreement between Megaphone and telepo.com like “The developer is responsible for the licensed purity of the product”, the position of the developer would be very difficult.
And by the way, legally, claims would most likely be put forward to Megaphone, since telepo.com is not listed in the list of program authors.
Summarizing - when buying a finished product, it is always necessary to analyze the license of the code. And if the code is not supplied, then examine the licenses of the libraries and components used. It is clear that Three Gas Station LLC is unlikely to do this, but the largest companies could attend to this.
As part of this service, Megafon "Multifon" is invited to download a SIP phone to a computer and make a call.
So, put, run, look in the "About the program":
"It uses libavcodec.dll from the FFMPEG project under the GNU LGPL license."
Indeed, it is used - in the directory with the program we find libavcodec.dll. Distribution conditions for LGPL are respected.
And also we find two files crashrpt.dll and libetpan.dll. We will study them in more detail.
crashrpt.dll - project CrashRpt , released under the New BSD Licensewhere such lines are present:
Redistributions in binary form must reproduce the above copyright notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer in the documentation and / or other materials provided with the distribution.
What the translation means - when distributed in binary form, it must be accompanied by a warning about copyright and the current license. In Multiphone there is no separate file with a license, in the dialog "About the program" there is no required data.
libetpan.dll is a libetpam project , released under its own license with the following lines:
Redistributions in binary form must reproduce the above copyright notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer in the documentation and / or other materials provided with the distribution.
What the translation means - when distributed in binary form, it must be accompanied by a warning about copyright and the current license. In Multiphone there is no separate file with a license, in the dialog "About the program" there is no required data.
We dig a little deeper - in the file MegaFon \ MultiFon \ Themes \ MegafonNew.actheme the name is indicated - Bjorn Kaxe. A search on Linkedin.com indicates a person - who is currently working in a certain telepo.com , which is engaged in the development of softphones and other things.
Now questions:
1) Has telepo.com licensed the CrashRpt component from its owner?
2) whether the licensed companies telepo.com library libetpanfrom its owner?
3) Do Megafon fully own the situation regarding their product - Multifon?
Upd: added resume:
I agree, there is no perfection in the world. Multiphone is an additional service, a shell for SIP.
However, a situation is possible where a third-party developer without looking will turn on a well-known component under the GPL license. And here a situation is possible when the authors of the component go to the end and demand reimbursement or compliance with the GPL license - after all, Megafon is a fairly large company.
If such a situation had happened with Multifon, then this could have led to the need to publish the codec codec GIPS, which probably violates the agreement between telepo.com and gipscorp.com. The result would be a legal conflict. And since there is probably a clause in the agreement between Megaphone and telepo.com like “The developer is responsible for the licensed purity of the product”, the position of the developer would be very difficult.
And by the way, legally, claims would most likely be put forward to Megaphone, since telepo.com is not listed in the list of program authors.
Summarizing - when buying a finished product, it is always necessary to analyze the license of the code. And if the code is not supplied, then examine the licenses of the libraries and components used. It is clear that Three Gas Station LLC is unlikely to do this, but the largest companies could attend to this.