Fluendo MP3 GStreamer Plugin in Main for Dapper?

[Aigars Mahinovs]

On 1/2/06, Nathan Willis <listbot at glyphography.com> wrote:
> Just trying to follow the discussion with precision here: surely you mean
> "This now prevents *distributing Rhythmbox* ... " in the third sentence
> here, not "This now prevents using the MP3 plugin ...."  Correct?

It is a bit more complex then that. The plug-in is provided in two
forms - binary form and source form. Only by using the binary form one
gets the MP3 patent licence, however the binary is only distributed
under a non-free licence that does not allow redistribution or
modification. On the other hand there is the MIT licenced source code,
but if you use that, you do not get the MP3 patent licence.

So, if you try to use the binary non-free plugin, Rythmbox combines
with Gstreamer in a memory of the computer forming a GPL derrivative
work and then there is an open question whether the user can link a
non-free plugin into that GPL work. Basically it is the question
whether a LGPL glue library can protect a non-free program from GPL
"contamination". I do not think so - that would have been a huge legal
backdoor around GPL copyleft protection.

>  I'm also (frankly) not convinced that that is what section 7 means.  Does
> anyone have actual documentation to that effect from, let's say, one of the
> other applications that has instituted an exception clause such as the one
> suggested in discussion here?

I can only say that I agree to what has been written in this blog:
http://thomas.apestaart.org/log/index.php?p=333

IANAL, but I can't seam to find any objections to that.


P.S. I hate that this list doesn't have Reply-To set to the list :P
--
Best regards,
    Aigars Mahinovs        mailto:aigarius at debian.org
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