• glassware@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    9
    ·
    edit-2
    1 year ago

    It’s a shame the strategy is now failing because software as a service is so popular. Nothing in the GPL forces you to distribute your changes if you don’t distribute the program. So just put the program on a webserver and let users interact through an API and hey presto, steal as much GPL code as you like.

    Everyone crucified MongoDB when they tried to create a licence that prevents this, and FSF have declared that the problem can’t be solved with licences and everyone just has to boycott non-free software (good luck!).

    End of free software as we know it, IMHO.

    • Occhioverde@feddit.it
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      13
      ·
      1 year ago

      Wasn’t the Affero GPL (AGPL) created exactely to enforce copyleft in a SaaS environment?

      Quoting from the GNU website:

      [The AGPL] has one added requirement: if you run a modified program on a server and let other users communicate with it there, your server must also allow them to download the source code corresponding to the modified version running there.