Marketplace free theme licenses can be revoked? (which would means add-on licenses as well)

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I noticed something that has me wondering about a license situation here in the marketplace. I had licenses for several free themes in my account. Recently those licenses disappeared! So I checked, and just as I suspected, the theme author (no need to name) had changed those formerly free themes to premium (no longer free).

Now I appreciate the rights of a theme (and/or add-on) developer to change their offer and no longer provide their item for free. And I also appreciate that the items were offered for free (for a time) in the first place. However, the fact that the licenses can be "revoked" raises some questions and concerns, at least in my mind. (I'm assuming since it was literally pulled out of my account that they are in fact revoked).

What does this say about the "rights" of someone that got this theme/addon? In other words, what about their situation and how they are (or planning on) using the theme or add-on? Are they supposed to just change their plans? Redesign and/or redevelop without the item?

Or are they now in a sense forced to pay for it? That can't be, because that would almost amount to extortion. Even if extortion were ok (which it isn't </grin>) who is to say that the new price is fair (or put another way, what would stop a developer from asking a ridiculously high price).

So if neither of the above situations is the case, then why were the licenses pulled? I ask this last question recalling that I specifically used the marketplace cart and added these free themes to my account just so that I would have the needed licenses (recall free items can actually be downloaded without doing so), actually foreseeing that a developer might actually decide to do just this. Because as I said before, I respect that right. But I did not expect the licenses to be pulled.

So what's the deal? I think this needs to be aired out.

OKDnet
 
frz replied on at Permalink Reply
frz
If free software goes commercial with a new version, that doesn't impact
the license you had to the earlier free version of that software. No
license is being revoked.

Licenses are offered on concrete5.org for extended periods as a courtesy
only. There's no contractual agreement that you get free updates, support,
or subsequent versions of an add-on/theme purchase after the 30 days of
promised support has passed.

Generally I believe marketplace developers here want to over deliver so I
wouldn't be surprised if lots of people had different expectations.


best wishes

Franz Maruna
CEO - PortlandLabs Inc
OKDnet replied on at Permalink Reply
OKDnet
Yes, that all makes sense Franz. However, the point I maybe didn't get across, and what this does not explain, is that in my account, where it has all my licenses, those items (the licenses) for those particular themes, are gone!!! They were there (I am 100% certain), but now they are not.

And BTW, the versions haven't changed (I checked what I have downloaded and/or installed against the current versions listed in the marketplace).

Is this perhaps the result of a marketplace bug that you are unaware of?
If not, and if as you say the change doesn't impact the license I have, then why are they no longer listed in my account?

I'm sure legally speaking, there is nothing to worry about, but the fact is that one of the nice features of the marketplace is the license section that keeps track of all your licenses. Hence, this entire conversation.

Owen
SheldonB replied on at Permalink Reply
SheldonB
i think there was/is a bug that if you clicked the 5 licence instead of the single licence it would disappear same thing happen to me - there have been several temporary free themes I went through and completed the process of grabbing, but are gone.
OKDnet replied on at Permalink Reply
OKDnet
If you try to add 5 licenses for a free item, it will not work. I assumed this was by design, and haven't tried to do this for a long time. The items disappearing did not happen as a result of that button (not in my case anyway). The licenses were there one day, and the next they were gone, all without me doing anything.
frz replied on at Permalink Best Answer Reply
frz
We handle paid and free licenses somewhat differently, so it wouldn't shock
me if the conversion from free to paid resulted in no copies of the legacy
free license stored on concrete5.org.

That doesn't impact your legal license to the software. The copy you have
was licensed to you under the license the add-on/theme had at the time and
the owner can not suddenly decide that your copies license has changed.

concrete5.org keeping a legacy history of all of your add-on/theme
purchases and their license history is an extra service we provide. Often
you buy software online and you get a download link that expires rather
quickly.


best wishes

Franz Maruna
CEO - PortlandLabs Inc