Software distribution licenses are not "irrevocable as a rule"

From: vnsndalce
Date: Fri Jan 04 2019 - 01:57:11 EST


1016160

The difference between you and them is that you believe that the GPL requires consideration between licensee and grantor to be revocable. Everybody else in the SFConverancy and the LKML disagree, a software distribution license is non-revocable.

Incorrect. The SFConverancy tries to construe the clause I cited earlier as a promise not to revoke, thus inducing, by their argument, a reasonable reliance on the part of the taker that the permission will not be revoked.

THAT is their argument.

That clause is not what they pro-port it to be, nor would it be effective if not contracted for. It is not reasonable to rely on a term that you paid no consideration to the grantor for.

a software distribution license is non-revocable.

Absolutely wrong. There is no such rule.

What you are thinking of, and you hinted at previously by calling the license a commercial license, is ... indeed, commercial software licenses where the taker pays consideration to the grantor.

In those cases, where there is a clause regarding revocation of the license, where the taker has payed for that license, the courts construe the contract to be one where those terms are not revocable because they are supported by the consideration the taker payed to the grantor.

THAT is why commercial software licensing contracts "are irrevocable".

Go read the cases. The fact that the consumer actually payed for the license is the deciding factor. He payed, he keeps what he payed for.

You did not pay? You did not pay linux coder 729 who is still a copyright holder to his code? Well your "interest" is unsupported as regards to that piece of linux coder 729's property.