News / Press

Artifex Software, Inc. Files Lawsuit for Copyright Infringement Against Siemens Product Lifecycle Management Software Inc.

By Lisa Fenn - Friday, September 20, 2019

Artifex Software, Inc. Files Lawsuit for Copyright Infringement Against Siemens Product Lifecycle Management Software Inc.

Artifex has filed a lawsuit against Siemens Product Lifecycle Management Software Inc. based on its unauthorized copying and distribution of Ghostscript.

San Francisco, CA, September 20, 2019 — Artifex Software, Inc. developer of Ghostscript®, -the industry leader in PDF, PostScript, PCL, and XPS rendering and conversion, today announced that it has filed a lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California against Siemens Product Lifecycle Management Software Inc. in Plano, TX, based on its unauthorized copying and distribution of Artifex’s copyrighted technology.

Using a dual licensing model, Artifex offers Ghostscript under a commercial license, or free of charge under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License (“AGPL”). The lawsuit asserts that Ghostscript has, for several years, been used by Siemens in its Solid Edge software product in a manner that does not adhere to the guidelines of the AGPL.

According to Miles Jones, president of Artifex Software, “As evidenced by its many licensees, Ghostscript is an outstanding technical choice for companies that need a high-performance PDF renderer. Artifex has long offered such companies a straightforward choice: Comply with the terms of the AGPL, sign a commercial license agreement with Artifex, or do not distribute Ghostscript. Siemens has refused each of these options, which is why we filed our lawsuit. We take our obligation to protect our intellectual property seriously.”

For more information contact:
Lisa Fenn, Director of Marketing
Lisa.fenn@artifex.com
415.492.9861

About Artifex Software, Inc.
For over 25 years Artifex Software has provided premier printing and document management solutions to top-level global customers including Google, HP, Adobe, Oracle, Dropbox, IBM, Kyocera, Oce, Ricoh, Caldera, BlackBerry, and Intuit. With teams of engineers and leadership talent on three continents, North America, Europe, and Asia we are positioned to help ensure your technology needs are met. Visit our website at artifex.com.