Commprod.htm 13 KB

123456789101112131415161718192021222324252627282930313233343536373839404142434445464748495051525354555657585960616263646566676869707172737475767778798081828384858687888990919293949596979899100101102103104105106107108109110111112113114115116117118119120121122123124125126127128129130131132133134135136137138139140141142143144145146147148149150151152153154155156157158159160161162163164165166167168169170171172173174175176177178179180181182183184185186187188189190191192193194195196197198199200201202203204205206207208209210211212213214215216217218219220221222223224225226227228229230231232233234235236237238239240241242243244245246247248249250251252253254255256257258259260261262263264265266267268269270271272273274275276277278279280281282283284285286287288289290291292293294295296297298299300301302303304305306307308309310311312313314
  1. <!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/html4/loose.dtd">
  2. <html>
  3. <head>
  4. <title>Conditions to distribute Ghostscript in a commercial context</title>
  5. <!-- $Id: Commprod.htm,v 1.15.2.2 2002/02/01 05:31:24 raph Exp $ -->
  6. <!-- Originally: commprod.txt -->
  7. <link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="gs.css" title="Ghostscript Style">
  8. </head>
  9. <body>
  10. <!-- [1.0 begin visible header] ============================================ -->
  11. <!-- [1.1 begin headline] ================================================== -->
  12. <h1>Conditions on distributing Ghostscript in a commercial context</h1>
  13. <!-- [1.1 end headline] ==================================================== -->
  14. <!-- [1.2 begin table of contents] ========================================= -->
  15. <h2>Table of contents</h2>
  16. <ul>
  17. <li><a href="#Free_version">The use of the public-access "free" version of Ghostscript</a>
  18. <li><a href="#GPL">The GNU General Public License (GPL)</a>
  19. </ul>
  20. <!-- [1.2 end table of contents] =========================================== -->
  21. <!-- [1.3 begin hint] ====================================================== -->
  22. <p>
  23. This document sets forth the conditions under which Ghostscript may be
  24. distributed in a commercial context: under a written license from <a
  25. href="#Artifex">Artifex Software</a> Inc., the copyright holder's exclusive
  26. commercial licensing partner, or under certain other very limited
  27. conditions.
  28. <p>For other information, see the <a href="Readme.htm">Ghostscript
  29. overview</a>.
  30. <!-- [1.3 end hint] ======================================================== -->
  31. <!-- [1.0 end visible header] ============================================== -->
  32. <hr>
  33. <!-- [2.0 begin contents] ================================================== -->
  34. <h2><a name="Free_version"></a>Use of the public-access "free"
  35. version of Ghostscript</h2>
  36. <p>
  37. Ghostscript is a copyrighted work whose copyright is owned by artofcode LLC.
  38. Some versions of Ghostscript are distributed freely under the name AFPL
  39. Ghostscript or (for older versions) Aladdin Ghostscript; these versions are
  40. always distributed with a license, called the <a href="Public.htm">Aladdin
  41. Free Public License</a> (also known as the AFPL), which permits AFPL
  42. Ghostscript to be redistributed freely under certain conditions. These
  43. conditions will almost always be met easily by individuals in their personal
  44. use of AFPL Ghostscript. AFPL Ghostscript may be <em>used</em> freely,
  45. including by commercial entities for evaluation or unsupported internal use.
  46. However, <em>distribution</em> for commercial purposes of Ghostscript, or
  47. anything containing or derived from Ghostscript in whole or in part,
  48. generally requires a written commercial license from <a
  49. href="#Artifex">Artifex Software Inc.</a>, the sole entity authorized by the
  50. copyright holder to grant such licenses. More specifically, the AFPL
  51. states:
  52. <blockquote>
  53. Distribution of the Program or any work based on the Program by a
  54. commercial organization to any third party is prohibited if any payment is
  55. made in connection with such distribution, whether directly (as in payment
  56. for a copy of the Program) or indirectly (as in payment for some service
  57. related to the Program, or payment for some product or service that
  58. includes a copy of the Program "without charge"; these are only examples,
  59. and not an exhaustive enumeration of prohibited activities). However, the
  60. following methods of distribution involving payment shall not in and of
  61. themselves be a violation of this restriction:
  62. <dl compact>
  63. <dt>(i)<dd>Posting the Program on a public access information storage and
  64. retrieval service for which a fee is received for retrieving information
  65. (such as an on-line service), provided that the fee is not
  66. content-dependent (i.e., the fee would be the same for retrieving the same
  67. volume of information consisting of random data).
  68. <dt>(ii)<dd>Distributing the Program on a CD-ROM, provided that the files
  69. containing the Program are reproduced entirely and verbatim on such CD-ROM,
  70. and provided further that all information on such CD-ROM be redistributable
  71. for non-commercial purposes without charge.
  72. </dl>
  73. </blockquote>
  74. <p>
  75. The intent of the exception provided in clause (i) is to allow commercial
  76. organizations operating an FTP server or a bulletin board to distribute
  77. AFPL Ghostscript freely from it, provided that:
  78. <dl compact>
  79. <dt>(1)<dd>the organization complies with the other provisions of the
  80. AFPL, which include among other things a requirement to distribute the
  81. full source code of AFPL Ghostscript and of any derived work, and to
  82. distribute the AFPL itself along with AFPL Ghostscript;
  83. <dt>(2)<dd>the only charge for downloading AFPL Ghostscript is a charge
  84. based on the distribution service and not one based on the content of the
  85. information being retrieved (i.e., the charge would be the same for
  86. retrieving a random collection of bits of the same size);
  87. <dt>(3)<dd>the server or BBS is accessible to the general public, i.e.,
  88. the phone number or IP address is not kept secret, and anyone may obtain
  89. access to the information (possibly by paying a subscription or access fee
  90. that is not dependent on or related to purchasing anything else).
  91. </dl>
  92. <p>
  93. Similarly, the exception in clause (ii) is intended to allow inclusion of
  94. AFPL Ghostscript on "freeware" CD-ROMs that contain only material that
  95. is in the public domain, or is freely redistributable provided only that a
  96. copyright notice is retained (such as the Independent JPEG Group
  97. libraries), or is distributed under some other kind of license allowing
  98. free redistribution such as the GNU
  99. <a href="http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/gpl.html">General Public License</a>.
  100. <p>
  101. If you want to distribute software in a commercial context that
  102. incorporates Ghostscript and you do <em>not</em> want to meet these
  103. conditions, you should contact <a href="#Artifex">Artifex Software</a> to
  104. find out about commercial licensing. Commercial licenses involve a
  105. (negotiated) payment, and include support and other benefits. These are
  106. the only ways you legally can distribute Ghostscript or anything containing
  107. Ghostscript: either by distributing AFPL Ghostscript under the
  108. requirements of the AFPL, or by getting a commercial license from Artifex
  109. Software.
  110. <p>
  111. <a name="Artifex"></a>For commercial licensing, please contact:
  112. <blockquote><address>
  113. Licensing Information<br>
  114. Artifex Software Inc.<br>
  115. 454 Las Gallinas Ave., suite 108<br>
  116. San Rafael, CA 94903 U.S.A.<br>
  117. +1-415-492-9861 telephone<br>
  118. +1-415-492-9862 fax<br>
  119. <a href="mailto:info@artifex.com">info@artifex.com</a><br>
  120. <a href="http://www.artifex.com/">http://www.artifex.com/</a>
  121. </address></blockquote>
  122. <p>
  123. If you have questions about the information in this document, please
  124. contact:
  125. <blockquote><address>
  126. artofcode LLC<br>
  127. 940 Tyler St. Studio 6<br>
  128. Benicia CA 94510 U.S.A.<br>
  129. +1-707-746-6398 fax<br>
  130. <a href="mailto:raph@artofcode.com">raph@artofcode.com</a><br>
  131. <a href="http://www.ghostscript.com/">http://www.ghostscript.com/</a>
  132. </address></blockquote>
  133. <h2><a name="GPL"></a>The GNU General Public License (GPL)</h2>
  134. <p>
  135. Older versions of Ghostscript (versions of 5.50 and previous) were
  136. distributed with a license called the GNU
  137. <a href="http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/gpl.html">General Public License</a>
  138. (also known as the "GNU License", the "GPL", or "copyleft"), which
  139. allowed distribution with commercial products under certain conditions.
  140. The copyright holder may choose to distribute other versions of Ghostscript
  141. with the GPL in the future; however, these versions will be identified as
  142. "GNU Ghostscript." The remainder of this section applies only to versions
  143. identified explicitly as GNU Ghostscript versions; the generic name
  144. Ghostscript, when applied to versions above 4.03, refers to AFPL
  145. Ghostscript, which is governed by the Aladdin Free Public License, not the
  146. GPL.
  147. <p>
  148. The full GPL is included under the name
  149. <b><tt>COPYING</tt></b> in the GNU Ghostscript fileset, and
  150. can also be obtained directly from the Free Software Foundation:
  151. <blockquote><address><a name="FSF_address"></a>
  152. Free Software Foundation, Inc. (FSF)<br>
  153. 59 Temple Place, Suite 330<br>
  154. Boston, MA 02111-1307 U.S.A.<br>
  155. +1-617-542-5942 telephone<br>
  156. +1-617-542-2652 fax (including Japan):<br>
  157. <a href="mailto:gnu@gnu.org">gnu@gnu.org</a><br>
  158. <a href="http://www.gnu.org/">http://www.gnu.org/</a>
  159. </address></blockquote>
  160. <p>
  161. or in Japan by free dial fax:
  162. <blockquote><address>
  163. 0031-13-2473 (KDD)<br>
  164. 0066-3382-0158 (IDC)
  165. </address></blockquote>
  166. <p>
  167. The GPL gotten directly from the FSF or the contents of the
  168. <b><tt>COPYING</tt></b> file are authoritative, but for those
  169. unfamiliar with the GPL, we now summarize its provisions.
  170. <dl compact>
  171. <dt>1.<dd>Anyone may copy and distribute GNU Ghostscript (both source and
  172. object code), but they must distribute the source code as well as the
  173. object code (or, if they distribute only the object code, they must
  174. include an offer in writing to provide the source code at no more than
  175. reproduction cost), keep all copyright and other notices, and include the
  176. GPL with the copies. (Note that this allows anyone receiving such a copy
  177. to distribute it freely as well.)
  178. <dt>2.<dd>Anyone may modify GNU Ghostscript, but the provisions of (1)
  179. apply to modified or derived works as well.
  180. <dt>3.<dd>GNU Ghostscript may be "aggregated" with another program; in
  181. this case, (1) and (2) do not apply to the other program, but only to GNU
  182. Ghostscript.
  183. </dl>
  184. <p>
  185. Provision (1) makes it much harder to have a commercial business based only
  186. on selling copies of GNU Ghostscript (as distributed with the GPL) or
  187. products that contain GNU Ghostscript, since any customer is free to make
  188. as many copies as they want for any purpose. Provision (2) effectively
  189. prevents the development of proprietary commercial products that
  190. incorporate GNU Ghostscript without a commercial license as a part, since
  191. these are "derived works" in the legal sense.
  192. <p>
  193. Questions have arisen at times in particular cases regarding provision (3)
  194. as to whether GNU Ghostscript is "aggregated" with other parts of a
  195. commercial product, or whether the product has become a "derived work."
  196. Normally, combining GNU Ghostscript with another piece of software creates
  197. a "derived work"; we consider GNU Ghostscript to be "aggregated" with
  198. another piece of software, which we will refer to as "the application",
  199. only if all of the following conditions are met:
  200. <ul>
  201. <li> The code and documentation for GNU Ghostscript are physically
  202. separated from the code and documentation for the application. For
  203. electronic form, it is both necessary and sufficient to put the GNU
  204. Ghostscript code and documentation in their own directory tree(s).
  205. <li> GNU Ghostscript, as delivered with the application, is usable
  206. independently of the application. More precisely, if a user deletes from
  207. the computer system all files delivered with the application except those
  208. in the GNU Ghostscript directories, the user will still be able to use GNU
  209. Ghostscript as described in GNU Ghostscript's documentation. Among other
  210. things, this requires that GNU Ghostscript not call any routines in the
  211. application, and not require any data or other files supplied as part of
  212. the application.
  213. <li> The application calls GNU Ghostscript in a way that allows an ordinary
  214. user to substitute another program for GNU Ghostscript. (Typically this
  215. requires use of a shell script or batch file, or a system call like
  216. "<b><tt>exec</tt></b>".) More precisely, if the user deletes from the
  217. computer system all the files in the GNU Ghostscript directories, and
  218. replaces the GNU Ghostscript executable with another program with the same
  219. name and conforming to the same documentation, the application will
  220. continue to work with it. One implication of this is that the GNU
  221. Ghostscript documentation must specify all properties of GNU Ghostscript on
  222. which the application relies; for example, if GNU Ghostscript has been
  223. modified by the addition of command line switches or language elements such
  224. as new operators, the documentation must describe any such additions that
  225. the application uses.
  226. <li> The conditions of the GPL are met with respect to GNU Ghostscript,
  227. including the requirement for propagation of the GPL and the requirement
  228. for delivering (or an offer to deliver) source code.
  229. </ul>
  230. <p>
  231. Regarding this last point, the GPL clearly intends that if the distributor
  232. only offers to provide the GNU Ghostscript source code (as opposed to
  233. actually distributing the source code with every copy of the application),
  234. then they must deliver the source code in a timely way to anyone
  235. requesting it.
  236. <p>
  237. The GPL makes it clear that if someone receives GNU Ghostscript only in
  238. its GPL-licensed form, they only have a right to distribute it if they
  239. comply with the GPL. artofcode LLC, as the copyright holder, takes
  240. this requirement very seriously, and will, if necessary, take legal action
  241. to ensure that anyone distributing GNU Ghostscript with the GPL complies
  242. with the conditions set forth above.
  243. <!-- [2.0 end contents] ==================================================== -->
  244. <!-- [3.0 begin visible trailer] =========================================== -->
  245. <hr>
  246. <p>
  247. <small>Copyright &copy; 1996, 1997, 1998 Aladdin Enterprises.
  248. All rights reserved.</small>
  249. <p>
  250. <small>This file is part of AFPL Ghostscript. See the <a
  251. href="Public.htm">Aladdin Free Public License</a> (the "License") for full
  252. details of the terms of using, copying, modifying, and redistributing AFPL
  253. Ghostscript.</small>
  254. <p>
  255. <small>Ghostscript version 7.04, 31 January 2002
  256. <!-- [3.0 end visible trailer] ============================================= -->
  257. </body>
  258. </html>