Posts Tagged ‘App Store’
Apple Would Quite Take Away App Than Depart Open-Supply License
Games, both free and paid, are perennial favorites in mobile app stores. So it was no surprise that GNU Go the free, GNU-based version of the ancient and popular game of Go was available as a free download in the Apple iTunes store. Until recently.
It disappeared as a direct result of a complaint from the Free Software Foundation that Apple’s Terms of Service violate the software’s license.
GNU Go is licensed under GPLv2. Section 6 expressly prohibits any “further restrictions” on the license, which allows anyone to copy, distribute or modify the software. But the App Store’s Terms of Service do just that, restricting where the downloads can be installed.
The FSF wrote to Apple, requesting that the company allow GNU Go (and any app under GPL) to be distributed under the looser licensing terms, but Apple removed the app instead.
So, I wondered, how does Google deal with situations such as this in its Android app store? I nearly got a headache from the legalese, but after reading and re-reading, it seems a very simple phrase Google includes in its Terms of Service basically eliminates this issue (emphasis mine):
10.2 You may not (and you may not permit anyone else to) copy, modify, create a derivative work of, reverse engineer, decompile or otherwise attempt to extract the source code of the Software or any part thereof, unless this is expressly permitted or required by law, or unless you have been specifically told that you may do so by Google, in writing.
Overall, Google’s TOS seem just as restrictive as Apple’s. And there may be some issues yet to be discovered with copyright and licensing. But in this one slight turn of phrase, Google says, “Hey! If the license of the software says you can do whatever you want with it, have at it. Otherwise, fuhggedaboutit.”
That one phrase is key. It enables Google to protect its copyrights and those of its app developers, but also allows software under various public licenses to propogate.
It is absolutely within Apple’s rights to regulate the apps sold in or downloaded from its store. But it is not within the company’s rights to enact stricter terms on the software’s use. OK, maybe it is legally within the company’s rights, but that doesn’t make it … right.
I’d imagine that Google’s phrasing is a direct result of the open source nature of Android and the company’s involvement in the open source world. But I find it puzzling that, as popular as Apple is among open-source advocates and users, Apple wouldn’t make such a simple fix to allow free, open-source apps to be propogated under the same licenses as they are elsewhere.
It’s such a small thing to do. It’s the right thing to do.
Image via GNU.org
Jobs To Builders: Persist With The Successful Group
Steve Jobs made his case to developers at WWDC on Monday.
James Martin/CNET)
SAN FRANCISCO–Facing growing competition from
Google Android and an amassing army of appealing smartphones, Steve Jobs played defense Monday.
At Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference where Jobs introduced the iPhone 4, he also spent a good amount of time selling his already popular platform to his audience of developers. More so than at past
iPhone developer events, Jobs was careful to spend time talking about how the App Store approval process works, how much money there is to be made from iAds, his device’s market share and reach, and the potential for growth that they have by placing their creations in the App Store.
Why? It could be that he’s feeling the heat. The App Store is a huge success and a model for the industry but has also gotten some flack lately with the growing perception of iOS as a “closed” system because of Apple’s strict control of what kind of apps are allowed and the recent Adobe Flash flap. Apple’s desire to control its platform has drawn the sometimes-public frustration of developers. Plus, Google has been making a case for why its free, open-source Android OS is a viable option for mobile app creators.
Jobs threw a lot of numbers out there, mostly to remind developers that even though other smartphone makers are catching up to and even surpassing the iPhone in some ways, that it’s the App Store’s reach and size make for a bandwagon that’s worth riding for a long time.
iOS by the numbers
Jobs started off by illustrating the App Store’s reach, through iOS devices including the iPad, iPhone, and
iPod Touch. Later this month, Jobs said Apple expects to pass a major milestone for its mobile platform.
Jobs demonstrates the iPhone’s reach in the U.S.
James Martin/CNET)
“We will sell our 100 millionth iOS device,” he said. That includes iPhones, iPod Touches, and iPads. And in case the developers in the audience weren’t clear on what he meant, he underscored that point: “There is definitely a market for your applications.”
That’s pretty obvious already, what with 8,500 iPad apps after two months on sale, plus 250,000 iPhone apps. He emphasized the giant lead his platform has over competitors when he revealed that there have been 5 billion apps downloaded total from the App Store.