FAQ: Is my version of Firefox illegal?
Posted: Sat Jun 09, 2012 9:30 am
This thread is drawn from the Tete's Atelier: Firefox & Thunderbird private builds thread but this topic comes up quite a bit. My response is intended to apply to all unofficial Firefox builds.
Is this [whatever special version] of Firefox illegal?
Is this [whatever special version] of Firefox illegal?
- We are not lawyers, but according to my understanding of the license, you can’t distribute something using the Firefox code and call it Firefox. You are welcome (as in the case of IceCat and PaleMoon) to call it something else and use different icons. The point is to avoid product confusion. The exception to this rule is PortableApps because they have worked with Mozilla to get a license.
- Having attempted getting a license and from chatting with members of the WinPenPack community, they appear to ignore other requests.
- Probably because PortableApps is established, has plenty of users, and responds to security concerns. Firefox is very afraid of both losing marketshare and being perceived as insecure.
- Unlikely. In its life, Mozilla has not been letigious and you don’t foster a community by suing people, especially when Google Chrome is winning in marketshare. It would be an argument in favor of Chrome’s more permissive BSD license, which has no such requirements. (Note that only part of Chrome is actually BSD-licensed, which is why we list it as Freeware.)
Since in almost every advertisement they put out Firefox posits itself as the open, community browser that responds to users and not corporate interests (e.g. Microsoft and Google are not trustworthy), it seems extremely unlikely they will take action against homebrewed Firefox versions.
- I don’t know -- I’m not a lawyer and I may not live in the same country as you. How about “not-compliant”?