Court rulings that open source software usage terms are legally enforceable

The GNU General Public License (GPL), an open source license that publishes the source code of software for free and allows modification and redistribution, is not a waiver of copyright and there are conditions for its use. In a trial filed for ignoring this condition, an order was issued to 'comply with the condition' and 'a fine will be imposed for each day of delay in compliance.'

Groundbreaking acknowledgment of Free Software in Italy --Dynamic.ooo --Dynamic Content for Elementor --WordPress Plugin
https://www.dynamic.ooo/press/groundbreaking-acknowledgment-of-free-software-in-italy/

Italian Courts Find Open Source Software Terms Enforceable | If This Be Treason
http://ifthisbetreason.com/2021/12/italian-courts-find-open-source-software-terms-enforceable/

Open source in software means that the source code that makes up the software is open to the public free of charge. Under an open source license, anyone can access, improve or redistribute the source code of the software. This will support the software throughout the community. If the source code is closed, some people will control the development, but if it is open source, many people will be involved, raising the level of the entire community and enabling sustainable software development. Is believed to be.

You can find out what open source is by reading the following articles.

A movie that explains 'What is open source?' In an easy-to-understand manner with Lego --GIGAZINE

The GPL is a well-known license for open source software. Open source software is not 'free to handle everything', but there are certain conditions. Under the GNU General Public License, access to the source code, redistribution of copies, improvement of the program and release to the public are permitted, but the source code is disclosed and the method of obtaining it is clarified at the time of redistribution. , License wording etc. are required.

There is a legal interpretation dispute over open source licenses, and many companies have filed trials in the past. Dynamic.ooo , a plugin for the open source blogging platform WordPress website builder Elementor , is also one of the organizations that has filed a lawsuit under the GPL.

Given that the Dynamic.ooo plugin is open source, two employees who retired from Dynamic.ooo redistributed the 'E-addons for Elementor' using the plugin under the GPL license. .. At this time, the two ex-employees did not get the consent of Dynamic.ooo and did not mention any modifications or copyright owners. Also, the two ignored the official termination notice from Dynamic.ooo. This is a violation under the GPL.

e-addons for Elementor --WordPress Plugin
https://e-addons.com/

On December 13, 2021, a court in Venice, Italy, ruled that 'free software entitles everyone, but requires distributors to comply with the terms'. The judge ordered the two ex-employees to remove the code contained in Dynamic.ooo within 7 days, or to suspend the distribution of the software until it complies with the license. Also, for 15 days after the notification is sent, a fine of 100 euros (about 13,000 yen) for each day of delay in compliance with the conditions, and 300 euros (about 39,000) for each day of delay after the 15th. I imposed a fine of Yen). In addition, the judge requested that references to this case be written in double-sized text on the website and Facebook page.

'This is an important step in strengthening the protection of intellectual property distributed under free-software licenses and a step forward in Italian law,' Dynamic.ooo said in a ruling.