Software Licenses

Software License is a legal instrument that governs how the software can be used and distributed. In other words a software license is an agreement between the user and the owner of a software program that allows the user to use the software and do certain things that would otherwise be an violation of the copyright law. Failure to adhere software license agreement terms often incur criminal charges related to licensed intellectual property and copyrighted material. Software license usually focus on following aspects,

Is the source code available for copying, modifying or to redistribute.

Where and how and how often User can install or use the software.

The Time period which is given for the license to use the program.

Features and rights available with the purchased license.

Is the license transferable.

Two common categories for software under copyright law, and therefore with licenses which grant the licensee specific rights, are proprietary software and free and open-source software (FOSS). Proprietary software is any software that is copyrighted and bears limits against use, distribution and modification that are imposed by its publisher, vendor or developer. Proprietary software remains the property of its owner/creator and is used by end users/organizations under predefined conditions. Proprietary software may also be called closed-source software or commercial software. On the other hand Free and open-source software (FOSS) allows users and programmers to edit, modify or reuse the software’s source code. This gives developers the opportunity to improve program functionality by modifying it.

The term “free” indicates that the software does not have constraints on copyrights. The term “open source” indicates the software is in its project form, enabling easy software development from expert developers collaborating worldwide without any need for reverse engineering.

Free and open-source software may also be referred to as free/libre open-source software (FLOSS) or free/open-source software (F/OSS).

The distinct conceptual difference between the two is the granting of rights to modify and re-use a software product obtained by a customer: FOSS software licenses both rights to the customer and therefore bundles the modifiable source code with the software (“open-source”), while proprietary software typically does not license these rights and therefore keeps the source code hidden (“closed source”).

Above two broad categories can be divided into more detailed special groups

Floating License :- floating license allows you to define a specific number of licenses to an application that are shared among a specific group of people.

Perpetual License :- a perpetual license is one where a software application is sold on a one-time basis and the licensee can then use a copy of the software forever.

Subscription License :- a subscription license is one in which the end user licenses the application on a re-occurring basis for a defined period. This might be 30 days (a monthly subscription) or 365 days (an annual subscription.)

Feature License :- the feature license model is used to limit the use of a specific feature of an application. In feature based licensing the software vendor, can control which features of your software the end user can and cannot use. The feature license can also be used to limit the number of times a specific feature of an application is used.

Trial License :- a trial license is like a fixed duration license, but with the main difference that owners are allowing access for a user to allow them to test the application with the hope that they will ultimately purchase a license. Users expect to be able to try out a software application before they buy it.

Academic License :- the academic licensing model is typically used by companies providing educational or engineering applications to schools and universities. It provides access to an application for that specific group of users and the license typically has different commercial terms (lower cost, free to use, throttled access to some features, etc).

Anchored License :- an anchored license is one in which a license is provided to a customer, but it is anchored to a specific device. The application can only be used on that specific device.

Device License :- different to an anchored license, with a device license there is no human actor involved. A license is granted for use of the application on a defined number of devices.

Fixed Duration License :- a fixed duration license is simply a license to a piece of software for a defined period of time.