"Licensed" codes

[Jay Turner]

On Tue, Sep 23, 2003 at 09:16:25AM -0500, Thomas Dodd wrote:
> 
> 
> Gordon Messmer wrote:
> >2) Negotiate a nonexclusive, transferable, unlimited license for those 
> >works and all derivatives.
> >
> >I think the latter is right out, considering that if a patent holder 
> >granted such a license, they'd never receive another dime of licensing 
> >income.
> 
> Negotiate the license above only for noncomercial/free software.
> Hasn't this been done before? Something about a license only for GPL 
> programs?
> 
> That allows GPL code to use the licensed material, derivitave also get 
> the right to use them as long as they are GPL, which is already required 
> by the GPL, so it's not a further restriction.

You can't restrict GPL code to non-commercial applications, but you could
attempt to get a license exemption which would allow for use of the codecs
in GPL code/applications.  This would be in compliance with the GPL, so
that issue would no longer be on the table, but the amount of money which
is going to be required to get the patent holders to agree to this is out
of this world.  Think about it, as soon as they allow for this type of
exemption, then everyone that wishes to use the codecs will just GPL their
players and no one would need to pay for a license anymore.

- jkt

-- 
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Jay Turner, QA Technical Lead      jkt at redhat.com             Red Hat, Inc. 

        Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one.
                                                   - Albert Einstein