IP, Open Source and Cloud Computing

SaaS, or Software as a Service, is a software delivery model in which a right to use is granted on a subscription basis. The SaaS model allows software to be centrally hosted and managed and remote access removes the need to distribute and install software. Solutions that are delivered using a SaaS model require a … Read more Cloud Services: Why You Shouldn’t Use a License Agreement for your next SaaS Project

In previous chapters we have learned a bit on GPL virality exemptions or safe harbors. As you may recall, the “identifiably independent and separate software” and the “aggregation exemption/immunity” exemptions provide some comfort, intermixing copyleft licensed code with non-copyleft code. This article will explain the limits and rules to mixing copyleft and copyrighted code. Intermixing … Read more FOSS Principles Explained Ch.IV: Intermixing Licenses

Open source licenses can be roughly divided into two families: copyleft (non-permissive) and non-copyleft (permissive). Most copyleft licenses are open source, but not all open source software is copyleft. Confused? Let’s break down what copyleft means to make things clearer. The term copyleft (a play on the word copyright) refers to open source licenses that … Read more FOSS Principles Explained Ch.III: Open Source and Copyleft

In the previous chapter, we stated that the license under which software is released determines whether or not it is open source. We also learned that one of the basic conditions that an open source license has to include is that the source code must be shared. Let’s drill down to better understand the other … Read more FOSS Principles Explained Ch.II: Open Source’s Four Freedoms

The Internet Takeover The Internet has fundamentally changed the way we consume goods and services. It now allows small retailers from India or China to target specific audiences of potential consumers in the US or anywhere else around the world. They can grow their business’ total addressable market far beyond the boundaries of their city … Read more FOSS Principles Explained Ch.I Software – Free Vs. Freedom