Software license
Information about Software license
A software license comprises the permissions, rights and restrictions imposed on software (whether a component or a free-standing program). Use of software without a license could constitute infringement of the owner's exclusive rights under copyright or, occasionally, patent law and allow the owner to sue the infringer.
Under a software license, the licensee is permitted to use the licensed software in compliance with the specific terms of the license. If there is a breach of the license, depending on the license it may result in termination of the license, and potentially the right of the owner to sue.
A software vendor may offer a software license unilaterally (without giving the licensee the opportunity to negotiate for more favorable terms) such as in a shrink wrap contract, or even as part of a software license agreement with another party. Virtually all mass produced proprietary software is sold under some form or fashion of software license agreement. One off, or custom software is often licensed under terms of which are specifically negotiated between the licensee and licensor.
In addition to granting rights and imposing restrictions on use of the software, software licenses typically contain provisions which allocate liability and responsibility between the parties. In enterprise and commercial software transactions these terms (such as limitations of liability, warranties and warranty disclaimers, and indemnity if the software infringes intellectual property rights of others) are often negotiated by attorneys specialized in software licensing. The legal field has seen the growth of this specialized practice area due to unique legal issues with software licenses, and the desire of software companies to protect assets which, if licensed improperly, could diminish their value.
Example of free software license: The GNU GPL is aimed at providing licensees with significant permissions and rights. There are restrictions in the license -- the licensee must pass on the received permissions and rights to anyone to whom they provide the software. Once a piece of software is distributed under the GPL that released copy will always be available with the permissions and rights received.
Microsoft SLPS: Microsoft SLPS (Software Licensing and Protection Services) is a software licensing suite that Independent Software Vendors (ISV) use to turn software features on and off. This allows for a new type of licensing method called dynamic licensing where ISVs can remove or enable software functionality without needing to recompile code or ship new software.
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A software license agreement is a memorandum of contract between a producer and a user of computer software which grants the user a software
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A software license agreement is a memorandum of contract between a producer and a user of computer software which grants the user a software
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Under a software license, the licensee is permitted to use the licensed software in compliance with the specific terms of the license. If there is a breach of the license, depending on the license it may result in termination of the license, and potentially the right of the owner to sue.
A software vendor may offer a software license unilaterally (without giving the licensee the opportunity to negotiate for more favorable terms) such as in a shrink wrap contract, or even as part of a software license agreement with another party. Virtually all mass produced proprietary software is sold under some form or fashion of software license agreement. One off, or custom software is often licensed under terms of which are specifically negotiated between the licensee and licensor.
In addition to granting rights and imposing restrictions on use of the software, software licenses typically contain provisions which allocate liability and responsibility between the parties. In enterprise and commercial software transactions these terms (such as limitations of liability, warranties and warranty disclaimers, and indemnity if the software infringes intellectual property rights of others) are often negotiated by attorneys specialized in software licensing. The legal field has seen the growth of this specialized practice area due to unique legal issues with software licenses, and the desire of software companies to protect assets which, if licensed improperly, could diminish their value.
Examples
Example of shrink wrap contract: an example of a license for which the originators maintain strict control over the software component is the Microsoft Windows Operating System software. This has helped Microsoft successfully gain a dominant position in the software market: Microsoft Licensing.Example of free software license: The GNU GPL is aimed at providing licensees with significant permissions and rights. There are restrictions in the license -- the licensee must pass on the received permissions and rights to anyone to whom they provide the software. Once a piece of software is distributed under the GPL that released copy will always be available with the permissions and rights received.
Microsoft SLPS: Microsoft SLPS (Software Licensing and Protection Services) is a software licensing suite that Independent Software Vendors (ISV) use to turn software features on and off. This allows for a new type of licensing method called dynamic licensing where ISVs can remove or enable software functionality without needing to recompile code or ship new software.
See also
- Comparison of free software licences
- EULA
- Free-software licence
- Software metering
- Glossary of legal terms in technology
- Open-source license
- Secured Dimensions
- License-free software
- Product key
- Dual-licensing
Wikibooks
External links
- "Various Licenses and Comments about Them". Free Software Foundation.
- Software licensing for a small ISV and the issue of open source by Dan Bricklin
- The Licensing Handbook Blog, a discussion of various software licensing issues by Jeff Gordon
- Microsoft Software Licensing and Protection Services.
Computer software is a general term used to describe a collection of computer programs, procedures and documentation that perform some task on a computer system. [1]
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Infringement, when used alone, has several possible meanings in the English language.
In a legal context, an infringement refers to the violation of a law or a right.
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In a legal context, an infringement refers to the violation of a law or a right.
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worldwide view of the subject.
Please [ improve this article] or discuss the issue on the talk page.
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Not to be confused with copywriting.
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patent is a set of exclusive rights granted by a state to a patentee for a fixed period of time in exchange for a disclosure of an invention.
The procedure for granting patents, the requirements placed on the patentee and the extent of the exclusive rights vary widely
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The procedure for granting patents, the requirements placed on the patentee and the extent of the exclusive rights vary widely
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lawsuit is a civil action brought before a court in which the party commencing the action, the plaintiff, seeks a legal remedy. One or more defendants are required to respond to the plaintiff's complaint.
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worldwide view.
Shrink wrap contracts are license agreements or other terms and conditions of a (putatively) contractual nature which can only be read and accepted by the consumer after opening the product...... Click the link for more information.
worldwide view.
“Eula” redirects here. For the community, see Eula, Texas.
A software license agreement is a memorandum of contract between a producer and a user of computer software which grants the user a software
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Proprietary software (also called non-free software or closed-source software) is software with restrictions on using, copying and modifying as enforced by the proprietor.
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worldwide view.
Shrink wrap contracts are license agreements or other terms and conditions of a (putatively) contractual nature which can only be read and accepted by the consumer after opening the product...... Click the link for more information.
Microsoft Windows
Screenshot of Windows Vista Ultimate, the latest version of Microsoft Windows.
Company/developer: Microsoft Corporation
OS family: MS-DOS/9x-based, Windows CE, Windows NT
Source model: Closed source
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Screenshot of Windows Vista Ultimate, the latest version of Microsoft Windows.
Company/developer: Microsoft Corporation
OS family: MS-DOS/9x-based, Windows CE, Windows NT
Source model: Closed source
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An operating system (OS) is the software that manages the sharing of the resources of a computer. An operating system processes system data and user input, and responds by allocating and managing tasks and internal system resources as a service to users and programs of the
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Microsoft Corporation
Public (NASDAQ: MSFT )
Founded Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA (April 4 1975)[1]
Headquarters Redmond, Washington, United States
Key people Bill Gates, Co-founder and Executive Chairman ;
Paul Allen, Co-founder ;
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Public (NASDAQ: MSFT )
Founded Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA (April 4 1975)[1]
Headquarters Redmond, Washington, United States
Key people Bill Gates, Co-founder and Executive Chairman ;
Paul Allen, Co-founder ;
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A free software licence is a software licence which grants recipients rights to modify and redistribute the software which would otherwise be prohibited by copyright law. A free software licence grants, to the recipients, freedoms
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GNU (pronounced ) is a computer operating system composed entirely of free software.
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GNU General Public License
Author: Free Software Foundation
Version: 3
Copyright on the license: Free Software Foundation, Inc.
Publication date: 29 June 2007
OSI approved: Yes
Debian approved: Yes
Free Software:
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Author: Free Software Foundation
Version: 3
Copyright on the license: Free Software Foundation, Inc.
Publication date: 29 June 2007
OSI approved: Yes
Debian approved: Yes
Free Software:
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Microsoft Software Licensing and Protection Services, also known as Microsoft SLPS, is a Software Licensing Suite that provides developers with the ability to protect code, license software, create license versions, and track performance of products and profitability.
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This is a comparison of published free software licences.
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General comparison
The following table compares various features of the license. This should not be taken as legal advice, but instead a general guide to the terms a license contains...... Click the link for more information.
worldwide view.
“Eula” redirects here. For the community, see Eula, Texas.
A software license agreement is a memorandum of contract between a producer and a user of computer software which grants the user a software
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A free software licence is a software licence which grants recipients rights to modify and redistribute the software which would otherwise be prohibited by copyright law. A free software licence grants, to the recipients, freedoms
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Software metering refers to several areas[1] of computer systems management:
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- software licenses. One needs to make sure that only the allowed number of licenses are in use, and at the same time, that there are enough licenses for everyone using it.
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The legal aspects of technology involve many different terms. This page attempts to provide short and accurate definitions of these terms, as they pertain to technology, with links to more information in Wikipedia.
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An open-source license is a copyright license for computer software that makes the source code available under terms that allow for modification and redistribution without having to pay the original author.
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Secured Dimensions
Private
Founded 2005, Kfar Saba, Israel
Headquarters Redmond, WA
Key people Avi Shillo, Chief Executive Officer
Industry Software
Products Software Protection and Liscensing
Revenue unknown
Employees 11
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Private
Founded 2005, Kfar Saba, Israel
Headquarters Redmond, WA
Key people Avi Shillo, Chief Executive Officer
Industry Software
Products Software Protection and Liscensing
Revenue unknown
Employees 11
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License-free software is computer software that is copyrighted but is not accompanied by a software license. Such software is rare.
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Examples
The best-known examples of license-free software are various programs written by Daniel J...... Click the link for more information.
A CD key is a specific software-based key for a certain program or a computer game. It is used to identify that the copy of the program/game is original. Activation is sometimes done offline simply by entering the key, or with software like Windows XP online activation is required
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Dual-licensing is the practice of distributing identical software under two different sets of terms and conditions. This may mean two different licenses, or two different sets of licenses.
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The Free Software Foundation (FSF) is a non-profit corporation founded on October 4, 1985 [1] by Richard Stallman to support the free software movement ("free" as in "freedom"), and in particular the GNU Project.
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Dan Bricklin
Dan Bricklin
Born July 16 1951
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
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Dan Bricklin
Born July 16 1951
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
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