[Fwd: [WBEL-devel] Rebuilt Progeny RPMs for RHL 7.2/7.3/8.0]

[Chris Spencer]

On Fri, 2004-01-16 at 13:09, Ray Ferguson wrote:
> Technically the sources are GPLed so the provider never has to have a 
> subscription or SLA of any kind to be entitled to the source code.  
> Additionally WBEL scrubs the source of trade marks prior to recompile, so you 
> can use WBEL without voiding RHEL SLAs.  Same goes for progeny.  

I can take a get the source to a product under the GPL.
I can make modifications to it and repackage it.
I can sell my repackaged for to corporation XYZ and I can say here is a
modified product.  It's licensed under the GPL so here is the source. 
You can do with it anything you want...but if you re-release it I won't
sell you the next upgrade.

XYZ can re-release the code in any way they want...they have the freedom
that the GPL affords but I don't have to continue to do business with
them.


As far as Red Hat and WBEL goes....what it boils down to (my bet) is
that they don't want the negative publicity associated with cracking
down on it.  The fact is they can't touch WBEL anyway.  

They can however, shut off the freely (and openly) provided distribution
and errata source code.  They still have to provide it but they could
get away with doing it only for subscribers and they could tell their
subscribers that their service would be terminated if they used it on
multiple systems without paying for each.

What I would hope is that people that are do these types of things don't
expect that they will be allowed to forever get no cost updates.  

If people want no cost updates then they better start contributing right
here.  Right now.

-Chris

"There are only two things that are infinite: the universe and human
stupidity. And I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein