Hello all! First of all, sorry for the cross-post to legal and tech but this concerns both...
I just got a call from one of the developers of the Easybox from Vodafone Germany! Many thanks also go to Neil for forwarding this within Vodafone - it did reach the right people, as it seems. Vodafone has recognised the GPL breach and, to what the contact said, they very explicitely required correct GPL/LGPL handling from their supplier but there seemed to be some "communication problem", he said. Vodafone revisited the problem and now has a tar-ball of the sources! Yeah! And they ask if we could help them, as they did not develop the software, to check if the tar-ball is complete. Well, I think this is fair. So I would like to ask here for some additional eyes to look on this tar-ball? We would get a first version, can analyse it and comment on it before Vodafone puts it up for public consumption. I think up to three or four people would be nice. Who would be willing to help? He also said that the original firmware contains proprietary parts like a SIP server. Vodafone originally had the plan to release two firmwares - a proprietary one which is the one one gets when buying the product and a "community edition", fully working and flashable but without the proprietary parts. I think this is excellent! But they currently still have legal concerns, e.g. emergency dialling and such. But once the sources are out and we get into good contact with them I think the community project will be the logical next step. Cheers nils Am 22.06.2013 00:29, schrieb Nils Faerber: > Hello all! > OK, this gets interesting... > > The device in question is the Vodafone EasyBox 904 LTE. > > Its firmware can be downloaded from the already mentioned public > download link > > http://media.vodafone.de/www/assets/software/FW904/UEfullimage_AT904L-01.07.bin > > which sits behind a legal disclaimer > > http://www.vodafone.de/business/hilfe-support/support-firmware-easybox-904-lte-modem_209581.html#rights > > which pretty clearly already violates the GPL/LGPL licenses since it > denies the right to pass on the free software contained in the device. > And of course no mention about the free software contained. > > The firmware "bin" file is a UBoot uImage format binary containing a > LZMA compressed SquashFS which can easily be uncompressed by the latest > SquashFS Utils. > > Besides busybox (GPL) it contains at least a dozen of other components > that are also either GPL or LGPL licensed. A major one are large parts > of OpenWRT, in /etc/ one can find: > > openwrt_version: > 10.03.1-RC5 > > openwrt_release: > DISTRIB_ID="OpenWrt" > DISTRIB_RELEASE="10.03" > DISTRIB_CODENAME="backfire" > DISTRIB_DESCRIPTION="OpenWrt Backfire 10.03" > > > The manual (German) of the device which can be found here > > http://media.vodafone.de/www/assets/pdf/hilfe-und-support/services/EasyBox_904_LTE_-_Handbuch_Stand_20.6.2012.pdf > > reproduces on page 170 the full GPL version 3 license text but omits the > "written offer" to request the sourcecode and where to do so. > > The manual also mentions a company > Astoria networks GmbH > Koelner Strasse 10b, > 65760 Eschborn > > as the manufacturer of the device. They again have a web page dedicated > to the EasyBox 904 LTE and open source sourcecodes contain therein > > http://www.astorianetworks.com/astoria/Easybox%20904%20LTE.html > > But there is no code! Just a "coming soon". > Same is BTW true for their other product, the "Livebox 2.1". > > > So for me the case is pretty clear now. > > There is a *massive* GPL/LGPL violation going on. > Vodafone is ignoring the GPL/LGPL almost completely. > And the manufacturer "Astoria" has recognised that they need to offer > the sources but they do not do it either. > > Since Vodafone is the company actually openly distributing the device > containing the compiled versions of the software and is also offering > the compiled version in the form of a binary file for public download > (see above) they are actively violating the GPL/LGPL. > > Cheers > nils > > > Am 21.06.2013 18:54, schrieb Neil Brown: >> On 21 Jun 2013, at 15:12, Nils Faerber <[email protected]> wrote: >> >> Enrico, Nils >> >>> Please post more follow-ups concerning the >>> Vodafone Easybox case to the legal list >> >> You are more than welcome to email your concerns to [email protected], >> and I can try to find an appropriate contact within Vodafone DE? >> >> Just please bear in mind that I don't work for Vodafone DE, nor do I have >> any knowledge of this particular product. (Similarly, when I post on this >> list, I do so in my personal capacity, as someone interested in the legal >> issues around FOSS, and not as an employee / spokesman of Vodafone.) >> >> >> Best wishes, >> >> Neil > -- Viele Grüße nils faerber
