[Mimedefang] GPLv3

[John Rudd]

Jeff Rife wrote:
> On 30 Jun 2007 at 14:09, David F. Skoll wrote:
> 
>> Jeff Rife wrote:
>>
>>> The biggest thing to figure out (and I'm afraid only a laywer could 
>>> follow the GPL3 enough to know the answer) is if using GPL3 on 
>>> MIMEDefang would essentially require you to give away CanIt with no 
>>> limitations on its use.
>> As the copyright holder on MIMEDefang, we can distribute it under whatever
>> terms we like.  Roaring Penguin is the only organization *not* bound
>> by the GPL when we distribute MIMEDefang, so I don't think that's
>> an issue.
> 
> I had done this same thought process, and it seems logical, but I 
> really don't know if GPL3 basically says that you can't keep any part 
> of an implementation "private" if it contains any GPL3 code.
> 
> Essentially, it would treat RP as two separate entities where one 
> distributes MIMEDefang under GPL3, and the other grabs that code, 
> modifies it, and distributes another product without including full 
> source.  I know that stopping things like Tivoization were at least 
> partly on the mind of the GPL3 writers, but I just don't know enough 
> about the way the license reads to say what would happen.

Tivoization is different from the case with MD.

With Tivo, their product has a huge key infrastructure piece that is 
someone else's GPL project (linux).  Tivo took someone else's GPL code 
and built another piece of their own code, and put them together to make 
a product.

MIMEDefang, as far as I know, is entirely owned by David and/or RP. 
David/RP build a piece of code.  They distribute it two different ways: 
one as a free GPL project, and one as a commercial product.  They basing 
their product on someone else's GPL project.

Very different from the Tivo situation.

Because they actually own the code they're distributing, they don't need 
to be two separate entities, as far as I know.