Ask HN: Is it OK to release GPL3 code of a project which is now private? | Hacker News Reader

Ask HN: Is it OK to release GPL3 code of a project which is now private?

4 pointsdjaychela3 comments

So, I've just discovered that a VST Synth that I've used (and reviewed) in the past that was previously free (with optional donation) is now paid-only if you want VST3, AAX and commercial use. [1]

This synth is GPL3 (or rather, was until the .01 update which has accompanied the change of licence), and the GPL3 code is still up on github[2].

Is it OK for me to do a release of this from the GPL3 code that I have now forked on github[3]? As I understand it, it should be, but I've not done anything like this before. The code was actually a fork of someone else's abandoned code that they got permission for, and they apparently have permission of the original writer to make it private now.

[1] - https://www.discodsp.com/obxd/ [2] - https://github.com/reales/OB-Xd [3] - https://github.com/djaychela/OB-Xd

I am totally not a laywer, but as somebody who's been participating in and/or observing the F/OSS world for a couple of decades now, my belief is that it's a common practice to do what you're describing. That is, "project has code under F/OSS license, project goes private/proprietary, so somebody forks the last version that was released under the F/OSS license." That pattern has played out over and over again, and I don't recall ever hearing of any legal consequences for doing so. Now, their might have been some legal saber-rattling or threats and insinuations hurled around. But not aware of a case where anybody actually lost a legal case or was punished for doing that.

But again... IANAL, this is not legal advice. If you're seriously concerned, the best bet is to contact a licensed attorney who practices in your area and pay them to give you advice.

I wonder if Richard Stallman consulted a lawyer and "paid them to give him advice" before he wrote the GPL. Something to think about.

Make sure nothing from the .01 update shows up in your fork...if you ever saw any of that code you might want to look at clean room design [5]

[5] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clean_room_design

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