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Consider a service such as Netflix... if on the server side netflix used code with a GPL license attached, do they have to make their server side code available under the terms of the GPL?

Obviously netflix being only an example, the company I worked for mostly provides 'services', we don't sell software that anyone can download to their computers, more like, computers over a network talk to our computers and stuff gets done.

Can I consider using GPL code in this environment without making all my code 'open source'?

gnat
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Ninjanoel
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1 Answers1

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No, you don't have to release any GPL-derived code as long as it is executed only on your own servers.

The GPL only applies when a program is given to another party.

There is the Affero GPL which requires to license the program to anyone who uses it remotely over a computer network, but this is still a rather exotic license.

Philipp
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