Kiosk mode & distributing proprietary add-ins

[Alan Pope]

2009/3/29 Liam Proven <lproven at gmail.com>:
> *But*... what if before despatch one added the "universe" repository & did
>
> apt-get install ubuntu-restricted-extras
>
> Would that still be OK?
>

No, because doing so would install at least msttcorefonts and flash,
both of which have non-redist EULAs.

> (or whatever the relevant package names are - the most common useful
> proprietary add-ons, those which are freely available from the online
> repos.) Nothing, in other words, that any Ubuntu user can't just add
> themselves without licences, payment, EULAs or anything else.
>

You may or may not realise but neither flash nor msttcorefonts are
actually in any repository that Canonical/Ubuntu operate.

If you install Flash or msttcorefonts what actually happens is you get
a little script downloaded which then downloads flash/fonts/whatever
direct from Adobe in the case of flash and sourceforge (mirrors) in
the case of msttcorefonts.

So again, you're still bound by the licenses for those packages.
There's not a special agreement that allows Canonical to redistribute
Flash because they dont actually redistribute it.

However, if you installed them on a PC and then sold it then you _are_
doing so which _is_ in breach of the relavent Adobe/Microsoft/whoever
licenses/EULAs.

Cheers,
Al.