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christoph-heisstoday at 12:03 PM2 repliesview on HN

No? Licenses still apply even if you _don't_ get sued?


Replies

latexrtoday at 12:54 PM

Do they? Isn’t the application of the license its enforcement?

It’s illegal to commit fraud or murder, but if you do it and suffer no consequences (perhaps you even get pardoned by your president), does it matter that it was illegal? Laws are as strong as their enforcement.

For a less grim and more explicit example, Apple has a policy on the iOS App Store that apps may not use notifications to advertise. Yet it happens all the time, especially from big players like Uber. Apple themselves have done it too. So if you’re a bad actor and disrespectful to your users, does it matter that the rule exists?