Re: [LAD] GPL and plugins

On Mon, Jun 21, 2010 at 12:13 PM, Victor Lazzarini
<Victor.Lazzarini@email-addr-hidden> wrote:
> A simple question: can GPL plugins be loaded into non-free hosts?

First off -- you can _do_ anything you like with a GPL plugin, the
question is whether you could legally redistribute it. Beyond that, I
don't think there is a single answer to this -- I think in practice it
would depend on whether the one thing (plugin or host) would be seen
by the reasonable person to be a derivative work of the other. If the
plugin only worked with a single host, or the plugin was necessary in
order to use the host, then it might be. If it used a well-defined
API supported by multiple hosts, perhaps predating either of the host
or plugin in question, then it probably wouldn't.

As a concrete example I think a GPL VST plugin would be perfectly
fine, provided of course that it used none of Steinberg's SDK code.
There are GPL'd VST hosts out there, so clearly the plugin does not
depend on a non-free host and can be happily distributed under the
GPL. What you choose to do with it once you've received it is up to
you -- the GPL only covers distribution -- so yes, I would think you
could indeed make, distribute, and use such a plugin.

Chris
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Received on Mon Jun 21 16:15:04 2010