Levi Ramsey said: > On Thu Aug 15 10:18 +1200, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: >> Why?? Is the MP3 format licensed?? There are plenty of freeware >> programs for emcoding MP3's in Windows, do they pay license fees?? >> And there are Open Source MP3 encoders, what precludes their >> inclusion in ML? Why is RipperX included in the distro then?? Just to >> rip waves and encode OGG files?? I think it is legal to RIP one's own >> CD's to MP3 for use on one's own PC, so I'm sorry if I don't see the >> problem here. Please enlighten me and others who may also wonder... > > An outfit in Germany (the Fraunhofer Institute) has patents on several > algorithms that are used in MP3 encoders. Essentially, binary > distribution of MP3 encoders that use these algorithms is highly > questionable in nations (such as the US and Japan) that have software > patents, unless one pays Fraunhofer.
LAME (LAME Ain't an MP3 Encoder) bla-bla-bla Please note that any commercial use (including distributing the LAME encoding engine in a free encoder) may require a patent license from Thomson Multimedia.
