From E Brian Rose (Jvzoo owner)
"Earlier today, the management of JVZoo was inundated with messages from the public demanding the removal of WP Ninja PopUp, a WordPress plugin being sold on JVZoo. Most of the messages referenced a blog post in which the writer accused a vendor of selling the software "without permission" and "illegally".
This outcry prompted management to temporarily suspend the sale of of the software in question. The vendor of the product reached out to us. We asked him to provide proof that he either created the product himself, had it created for him, or had proper licensing to resell the software. The vendor provided us with the original three plugins in which his product was derived from. Each of these three pieces of software came bundled with a notice stating they were licensed under the General Public License (GPL).
The GPL is a copyleft license, which means that derived works can only be distributed under the same license terms. Section 1 of the licensing agreement specifically states, "You may modify your copy or copies of the Program or any portion of it, thus forming a work based on the Program, and copy and distribute such modifications or work." The GPL allows the distribution of verbatim, modified, and derivative forms of the original licensed item, so long as the same rights are passed along, as well as other specified notifications. The GPL further states that a fee may be charged for the distribution.
JVZoo management has verified that these requirements have been met and the product has been reinstated. Keep in mind that we have only heard from of the two parties involved in this matter. All of the outcry demanding the product be taken down has come from third parties that do not have a claim in the matter. The developers of the original three plugins have not reached out to us.
It is the policy of JVZoo not to get involved in disputes regarding copyright or licensing issues, without being served a properly formatted DMCA takedown notice or a court order. We have adopted this mindset because we could not possibly have all of the information necessary to make judgement without, what would equate to, a mini trial.
Should we receive a properly formatted takedown notice or court order regarding these matters, JVZoo will act in accordance with the law.
We understand that our decision may not be popular with those that have contacted us in an attempt to have the product removed, but because of the reasons explained above, we must stick with this decision.
It may have been easier and a better public relations decision if we had just removed the product, but I believe in following the law to the best of my ability and making decisions based on evidence and fact, instead of just doing what is popular. As a business, we must ignore any sentimental complaints and only act on what is written in black and white.
I invite everyone to familiarize themselves with the GPL. A copy can be found at their
http://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-2.0.html
The GPL is not a complex licensing agreement, however it has been, and probably will continue to be, at the center of controversy by those who do not agree with the privileges it grants.
Please, feel free to discuss this matter below, but in the absence of a properly formatted complaint from the original developers, we had no choice but to come to the decision we have.
(EDIT) I removed the mudslinging going on below. I think my post gave a clear path to resolve for the parties involved. Any negotiating or name calling between the parties should be done elsewhere."