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Licensing InformationIMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT DISTRIBUTING SOFTWARE FROM ARTIFEXIf you want to distribute Ghostscript® technology, you've come to the right place: Artifex is the exclusive commercial licensing agent for Ghostscript software. You should know that there is no "public domain" version of Ghostscript. All versions of Ghostscript are provided under one of two licenses described below. If you plan to distribute Ghostscript, you should understand the differences between these licenses. The kind of distribution you plan to make of Ghostscript, as explained below, will determine whether you need a commercial license from Artifex. Please note that the following rules apply even if you ship a free demonstration version of your own product or application. An "application," as referenced below, can be any type of software product or application, tool, system or utility. VERSIONS OF GHOSTSCRIPT ARE LICENSED UNDER TWO TYPES OF LICENSES.....1. Artifex Ghostscript. Artifex Ghostscript is any version of Ghostscript licensed for commercial use and distribution under an Artifex Commercial License. Artifex is the exclusive commercial licensing agent for Ghostscript software. 2. GPL Ghostscript. GPL Ghostscript can be licensed under the GNU General Public License (the "GNU GPL"). IF YOUR ENTIRE APPLICATION IS LICENSED TO THE PUBLIC UNDER THE GNU GPL, YOU CAN DISTRIBUTE GNU GHOSTSCRIPT WITH YOUR APPLICATION WITHOUT A COMMERCIAL LICENSE . . .If your application, including all of its source code, is licensed to the public under the GNU GPL, you are authorized to ship GPL Ghostscript with your application under the terms of the GPL license agreement. You do not need a commercial license from Artifex. The terms of the GNU GPL include the requirement that your application be licensed as a whole at no charge to all third parties. Moreover, the entire application must be licensed to the public under the GNU GPL. IF YOUR APPLICATION IS NOT LICENSED TO THE PUBLIC UNDER THE GNU GPL AND YOU PLAN TO DISTRIBUTE GHOSTSCRIPT SOFTWARE. . .If your application (including its source code) is not licensed to the public under the GNU GPL, you are not authorized to ship GPL Ghostscript with your application under the terms of the GNU GPL if any one of the following is true:
These criteria apply to your application as a whole. Even if only one section of your application satisfies one of these criteria, you are not authorized to ship GPL Ghostscript with your application unless your application, including all of its source code, is licensed to the public under the GNU GPL. If your application (including its source code) is NOT licensed to the public under the GNU GPL and you intend to distribute Ghostscript to a third party for use with and usable by your application, you MUST first obtain a commercial license from Artifex. Examples of Distribution:Some examples of distribution requiring a commercial license include: 1. Distributing Ghostscript (or any component thereof) within your non-GNU GPL application. 2. Distributing Ghostscript on the same media with your non-GNU GPL application for use with and by your application. 3. Distributing Ghostscript embedded within hardware. DOES ARTIFEX RECOMMEND THE COMMERCIAL LICENSE?Artifex recommends that all commercial entities that wish to distribute Ghostscript enter into the Artifex Commercial License with Artifex. Not only does it free you from having to conform to the requirements and restrictions of the AFPL and GPL licenses, but it also provides you with additional protections and rights, such as support. GPL Ghostscript is provided "AS-IS" without warranties or support of any kind. To obtain a copy of the GNU General Free Public License, please click here:GPLSTILL HAVE QUESTIONS? Please feel free to contact us at: Artifex Software Inc. San Rafael, CA 94903 U.S.A. Fax +1 415 492 9861 |
