From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A software license comprises the permissions, rights and restrictions imposed on software (whether a component or a free-standing program). Use of software without a license could constitute infringement of the owner's exclusive rights under copyright or, occasionally, patent law and allow the owner to sue the infringer.

Under a software license, the licensee is permitted to use the licensed software in compliance with the specific terms of the license. If there is a breach of the license, depending on the license it may result in termination of the license, and potentially the right of the owner to sue.

A software vendor may offer a software license unilaterally (without giving the licensee the opportunity to negotiate for more favorable terms) such as in a shrink wrap contract, or even as part of a software license agreement with another party. Virtually all mass produced proprietary software is sold under some form or fashion of software license agreement. One off, or custom software is often licensed under terms of which are specifically negotiated between the licensee and licensor.

In addition to granting rights and imposing restrictions on use of the software, software licenses typically contain provisions which allocate liability and responsibility between the parties. In enterprise and commercial software transactions these terms (such as limitations of liability, warranties and warranty disclaimers, and indemnity if the software infringes intellectual property rights of others) are often negotiated by attorneys specialized in software licensing. The legal field has seen the growth of this specialized practice area due to unique legal issues with software licenses, and the desire of software companies to protect assets which, if licensed improperly, could diminish their value.

Example of shrink wrap contract: an example of a license for which the originators maintain strict control over the software component is the Microsoft Windows Operating System software. This has helped Microsoft successfully gain a dominant position in the software market: Microsoft Licensing.

Example of free software license: The GNU GPL is aimed at providing licensees with significant permissions and rights. There are restrictions in the license -- the licensee must pass on the received permissions and rights to anyone to whom they provide the software. Once a piece of software is distributed under the GPL that released copy will always be available with the permissions and rights received.

Microsoft SLPS: Microsoft SLPS (Software Licensing and Protection Services) is a software licensing suite that Independent Software Vendors (ISV) use to turn software features on and off. This allows for a new type of licensing method called dynamic licensing where ISVs can remove or enable software functionality without needing to recompile code or ship new software.

• Comparison of free software licences
• EULA
• Free-software licence
• Software metering
• Glossary of legal terms in technology
• Copyright licenses (category)
• Open-source license
• Secured Dimensions
• License-free software
• Product key
• Dual-licensing

• Free/Open_Source_Software:Licensing

• "Various Licenses and Comments about Them". Free Software Foundation.
• Software licensing for a small ISV and the issue of open source by Dan Bricklin
• The Licensing Handbook Blog, a discussion of various software licensing issues by Jeff Gordon
• Microsoft Software Licensing and Protection Services.