Is it legal to sell linux distributions and make a profit?

Klas · 06-13-2004, 11:37 AM

Me and my friend had a dicussion around this matter: "Is it legal to sell linux distributions and make a profit?"

I mean:
- Download
- Burn on cd's
- Sell

Klas

XavierP · 06-13-2004, 11:39 AM

Well, there are many many sites and shops that do this (they even exhibit at Linux expos) without being pulled up by the FSF/GNU/etc. So the answer is a resounding YES.

Klas · 06-13-2004, 11:45 AM

Damn you are fast, i just relased the "Enter" button

What do the big companies like Mandrakesoft think about that?

Klas

XavierP · 06-13-2004, 11:52 AM

I don't think there's much they can do about it - the gpl explicitly allows it. And since all Linux distros have to be released under the gpl......

2damncommon · 06-13-2004, 01:01 PM

Check the licenses on the distros you are wanting to distribute. The free downloads are generally fair game. Some non-GPL licensed software may not be.
Wasn't there some company going after people on Ebay for selling, Mandrake (I think) download version?

XavierP · 06-13-2004, 01:17 PM

I think that was mainly because the profit they were looking for was excessive or that they were trying to make out that they were official distributors and no one else should distribute. Something like that.

And yeah, thanks for the reminder - non-gpl software (like nvidia drivers, for instance) is only available in the full retail versions - the downloads don't have them.

Klas · 06-13-2004, 03:16 PM

I dont think i will sell any distributions, just curios.

Thanks for the info guys!

e1000 · 06-13-2004, 07:37 PM

a general rule is if you can download it (at an offical site) then you can sell it.

distros are not required to come out under a GPL lisence and many distros have original software in them, and mabee much of their software might be GPL, but even a small amount of copywriten material can make it illegal to copy and sell a distro.

its best to check on the web site of the distributor.