Kiss: Regarding "Slide Launcher Pro"

[Neamar]

(followup from a discussion on #369)

tl;dr: There is an app selling a modified KISS version on the Play Store. KISS is GPL. They claim they published it while it was still MIT. But they have new features. Anyone with legal knowledge on the topic?

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Play Store link: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.plh.note7slide

Since KISS licence is GPL, I sent this first email:

Hi,

I'm Neamar on Github, owner of the https://github.com/Neamar/KISS/ repository on which Slide Launcher is based.

Kiss licence is GNU/GPL v3.

Although you're more than welcome to create your own fork of the project and add features, you also need to comply with the project's original licence at https://github.com/Neamar/KISS/blob/master/LICENSE

You're allowed to sell the project if you want to, but in your case, you also need to:

* Open source the changes you built on top of KISS (grid view, etc.)
* Ensure that you mention the original project is KISS. A link in your Play Store description should be enough.

Thanks for your attention, congrats on your changes -- looking forward to seeing them online :)

After this email, the description for the PRO version (not the standard one) was updated to mention "Neamar/Kiss" in text (no link). The lite version doesn't mention anything, but in the app, settings, legal, you can see "© Matthieu Bacconnier 2015" -- that's my name, but I never had any © on KISS.

I had no reply to my email, but @eevleevs contacted them, saw they didn't want to change anything and reminded me of the problem. So I sent another email:

Hello again,

I noticed that you changed the description in the Store, thanks. I'd appreciate if you could make it a link, either to the Play Store or Github.

However, you haven't open-sourced your changes, which is the second requirement from the GPL licence.

It also looks like in discussions with other persons, you failed to mention you had already been asked to publish the source code.

Please do it before next Friday (that will give you a month of notice since my first email), since respecting the license will mean a better ecosystem for everyone's app -- plus, as you make money out of the app, it's only fair that you comply with the legal requirements.

Thanks for your attention again. Hopefully, I won't have to send another mail next week...

This time, I got an answer, asking me "how to open-source", and claiming that Slide Launcher was on the Store while KISS was still MIT (July 3rd, 2016 https://github.com/Neamar/KISS/commit/1443adc77a89d4ec5dde3e0378d0da06b626b682).

A quick look at the app, which is very similar to KISS indeed, let me think they've incorporated features published in KISS since then (color change at least), and from my understanding of GPL the licence is sticky which means that by pulling part of the code they agree to publish all of the code.

Anyone here with some legal knowledge on the matter? Would like to double check I'm correct before asking for Play Store arbitration.

[ghost]

@Neamar I am a dev , aslo newbie github. I comment this because I like KISS so much.
So, I tried to download Slide launcher at your link . I see Slide launcher actually difference so much with KISS.They developed it about UI and additional feature(widget, lock app, notification app,material icon,music provider). I aslo see them to adding KISS in description, add license of KISS at MIT. Maybe Slide was up on playstore while Kiss still use MIT license. Actually, this is difficult to ask them public source code, because they do not violate license. I think if you public Kiss as open source , we do not need care them because Slide has small users (10-15 download)

Let's skip it and focus to dev new ideas for KISS. 🤗😄😃

[Neamar]

@LoveAndroid2017 ...
seriously?
Your English betrays you as the one sending the email on behalf of Slide Launcher. Excerpt from your email: "On other hand, Slide launcher have on play store when KISS still use MIT licence. We can check date time of Slide when up to play store. "

So, I'll answer your comment as if I was talking directly to Slide Launcher developer:

• they do not violate license => you do.
• Slide has small users => first off, this doesn't matter. We're talking about licence here. But to humor you... the play store says "Installs 10,000 - 50,000". (source https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.plh.gofastlauncher). I guess 4 orders of magnitude isn't much for you?
• Next time please disclaim honestly who you are ;)

[Nemris]

Bull's eye, @Neamar! I was just waiting to see if you could spot the lie. Good one.

[Nemris]

Hey, @Neamar. Notice how the "plh" part inside "com.plh.gofastlauncher" fits nicely with the mister's username, "phonglanhuong".

[craftyguy]

You could contact the EFF. They are skilled in handling matters of GPL misuse and may offer some advice.

[ghost]

@Neamar
Any updates on this topic? I hate this has happened to you and KISS.

[Neamar]

@ikocevski thanks for reminding me!

I've just reported the app to the Play Store administration. I'll wait for their reply :)

[Philippe-Arnaud]

Hello,

If they forked the source from a MIT licensed code base, then it would be impossible to ask them to distribute the source code of their application along with the binary as per the GPL terms.

Nevertheless, if they use code from the current GPL licensed version, then they are violating the terms of the GPL. Since you are located in France, and should this situation persist, I'd advise you to contact the April association and / or the FSF for further assistance on how to defend your rights and intellectual property.

[Neamar]

Hi @Philippe-Arnaud

Thanks for the advice!

Pieces of GPL code are part of Slide Launcher. Play Store came back asking for more details, will fill out their form early next week when I'm back home

[Philippe-Arnaud]

@Neamar If you used GPL licensed component to develop Kiss Launcher in the first place then:

• you shouldn't had licensed your own code with a MIT license since those two are incompatible in that direction but it is not that problematic now that you've switched back to the GPL
• Slide Launcher definitely cannot use GPL licensed source code (from you or from third parties libraries that you or they used) to build and distribute a closed source application.

If necessary, fell free to ask for assistance to fill the form.

[Neamar]

Hi @Philippe-Arnaud!

A bit of context:
KISS was originally named Summon, and licensed MIT. At some point during KISS development, it was switched to GPL -- all previous authors were contacted and notified about the change, and more importantly all the new contributions accepted onto the source base were automatically GPL. Some of those contributions found their way in Slide Launcher.

Kinda related: also contacted the developer of https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.mumayankm.thankyou.bitlauncher#details-reviews who agreed to remove his app from the Store 15 days ago but hasn't yet, I'll recontact him later.

@Philippe-Arnaud: thanks for your offer of assistance to help with the form. I'm still waiting for the Store for now, if this doesn't work then yeah let's do it.

[Neamar]

Looks like we're all good here. Closing, if there is a new copycat we can open a new issue.

[eevleevs]

Sorry, but what was the conclusion?

[Neamar]

Bitlauncher was removed,

Slide Launcher is now lower in search results as another app named the same (not a KISS copycat) was added to the Store.

Feel free to "report as inappropriate" from your phone this app: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.plh.note7slide

I'm still waiting for an official answer from the Play Store sadly.

[eevleevs]

Reported