Sony Pirates KDE Artwork

By f0rk_b0mb
in Linux

 Share

Recommended Posts

Grand Master

f0rk_b0mb

Posted
Posted

http://blogs.kde.org/2013/02/21/sony-pirates-kde-artwork

Sony, the company who created Audio CDs which installed a rootkit on Windows computer to try to stop people copying music has pirated KDE artwork. The preferences-system.png icon from Oxygen is on their Choose your Vaio webpages (next to configure) but impressively is also on the UEFI firmware should you boot up into Assist mode. Nowhere on their website terms of use does it list the LGPL 3 licence it may be copied under (It does say "Any unauthorised use or copying of site content, or use of site content which breaches these Terms (or their spirit) may violate trade mark, copyright and other proprietary rights, and have civil and criminal consequences" although it also says "You must seek and obtain the written consent the operator of this site before creating any link to this site" so I don't give that page any legal credit.) Should KDE e.V. and Nuno's Oxygen friends start a new business model by sueing them for everything they're worth?

sony-pirate-artwork.png

Oxygen icon on left. "Choose your Vaio" web page fragment on right.

Personally, I think they should give credit to them. It shouldn't come down to a lawsuit--they'd just be burnning money they can use to write more OSS. What do you guys think?

Link to comment
https://www.neowin.net/forum/topic/1137742-sony-pirates-kde-artwork/
Share on other sites
Enthusiast

TurboShrimp

Posted
Posted

its silly over just an icon.

if you visit Linux mint website you don't see them saying " hey thanks Ubuntu "

or UBUNTU under the hood . lol

if so you really need to search the site to find out.

point is its silly and either side is making money from it

^^ Not when you are profiting from it

do you have a source that shows how much money sony has made from the use of that icon ?

Grand Master

sanctified Veteran

Posted
  • Veteran
Posted

its silly over just an icon.

if you visit Linux mint website you don't see them saying " hey thanks Ubuntu "

or UBUNTU under the hood . lol

if so you really need to search the site to find out.

point is its silly and either side is making money from it

do you have a source that shows how much money sony has made from the use of that icon ?

If you think this is just over an icon you're missing the point.

  • szo and +hedleigh
  • Like 2
Grand Master

sanctified Veteran

Posted
  • Veteran
Posted

Did KDE get permission from Adobe to use their Acrobat logo for PDF files? As far as I know KDE doesn't ship with an official version of Adobe Acrobat.

Since the open standarization of PDF back in 2008 Adobe also allowed the reproduction of the logo.

Rising Star

tim_s

Posted
Posted

To be honest here,

This seems to be more about a mistake from a developer than Sony actively abusing their power. Clearly Sony has the capacity to make up a "icon" - to say otherwise is just silly. Not saying that Sony is or is not an "Evil" corporation but in this manner I am sure if any financial penalty is required by KDE, the matter will be properly handled.

Images would set an interesting legal precedent... how does one provide the source code for an image?

Images are protected under the copyright act.

Rising Star

tim_s

Posted
Posted

Fair enough. I still find the whole thing questionable since KDE took quite a few ideas from Windows Aero.

It is not questionable, this is a person or group who found that Sony used a KDE image. KDE has not taken any action according to the information.

Grand Master

Anibal P

Posted
Posted

I was of the opinion that most artwork included with open source projects like Linux distributions was free for use and redistribution?

You still have to give credit and follow any other conditions of the license since there's different clauses for commercial and private uses, it's not a free for all and anarchy in the FOSS world, no matter what the media says

Grand Master

Noir Angel

Posted
Posted

Fair enough. I still find the whole thing questionable since KDE took quite a few ideas from Windows Aero.

It's irrelevant. Adobe gave their permission for that image to be used, the permission of the KDE developers asked. Usually I tend to find Linux developers are pretty good where sharing their creations are concerned. As for the other point you made... so what? Very few pieces of software as complex as a Linux window manager or operating system will be built without using some of the competition's ideas it's just the way computing works.

You still have to give credit and follow any other conditions of the license since there's different clauses for commercial and private uses, it's not a free for all and anarchy in the FOSS world, no matter what the media says

Understood, I understand the basics of how the GPL works but in truth I rarely read licensing agreements :p

Grand Master

.Neo

Posted
Posted

It is not questionable, this is a person or group who found that Sony used a KDE image. KDE has not taken any action according to the information.

I wasn't pointing a finger at KDE. I find the complaint in general questionable.

As for the other point you made... so what? Very few pieces of software as complex as a Linux window manager or operating system will be built without using some of the competition's ideas it's just the way computing works.

Right, and if that's how computing works you can ask yourself whether you should make a big fuss about an icon being used on a fairly low-profile part of a third-party website. Surely if KDE can "borrow" major parts of the Windows Aero experience Sony can "borrow" an icon. You take some, you loose some.

  • Matthew_Thepc
  • Like 1
Grand Master

.Neo

Posted
Posted

It's just the opinion of a third party. Judging KDE's position before they voice it is a bit foolish would you not agree?

I'm responding to the opinion of said third party. I'm not judging KDE's currently non-existent official position in any way.

Grand Master

f0rk_b0mb

Posted
  • Author
Posted

Fair enough. I still find the whole thing questionable since KDE took quite a few ideas from Windows Aero.

KDE had Aero before Windows did. KDE 4.0 (released 2006...Vista was 2007 if I remember right) had Aero like boarders. Compiz (the window decorator) has been around, in one form or another since the early 00's.

This topic is now closed to further replies.
 Share
Go to topic listing

  • Posts

    • Amazon may use OpenAI and Nova models after Anthropic reportedly raises costs

      By Karthik Mudaliar · Posted

      Amazon may use OpenAI and Nova models after Anthropic reportedly raises costs by Karthik Mudaliar Amazon is reportedly considering to use OpenAI models and even its own Nova family of AI models after Anthropic raised the cost of using Claude inside Amazon services. According to a report from The Information, Amazon is weighing its options to reduce costs under a new arrangement with Anthropic. But back in April, Amazon said it would invest $5 billion more in Anthropic, with the possibility of adding up to another $20 billion if certain commercial milestones are met. That investment actually came on top of another $8 billion Amazon had already put into the Claude maker. Anthropic, meanwhile, committed to spend more than $100 billion over 10 years on AWS technologies, including Amazon’s Trainium chips. Amazon isn't just a customer of Anthropic but also one of the most important backers and cloud partners. This is why it makes it interesting that Amazon is considering other alternatives to handle its internal workloads. Although Amazon has been building its own options for a while now. Its Nova family of AI models was announced in late 2024 for Amazon Bedrock, with models aimed at text, image, and video tasks. Amazon pitched the model around cost and latency at that time. With that said, OpenAI has also become a more realistic option recently for AWS customers as well as for Amazon itself. Earlier this year, OpenAI brought its latest models and Codex coding agent to Amazon Bedrock, after changes to its previously more restrictive Microsoft cloud arrangement. This allowed AWS to serve even those customers who wanted other alternatives from Claude, without having to move workloads out of Amazon's cloud. Evaluating alternatives could also be due to commercial pressure and not necessarily a sign of a damaged partnership between Amazon and Anthropic. Whether or not Amazon is actually considering switching entirely to OpenAI's models or its own Nova models remains unknown at this moment.
    • Samsung introduces new AI classroom tools and interactive displays at ISTELive 2026

      By Fiza Ali · Posted

      Samsung introduces new AI classroom tools and interactive displays at ISTELive 2026 by Fiza Ali Samsung has announced several new education-focused software features and interactive displays for schools during ISTELive 2026, taking place in Orlando, Florida, from 28 June to 1 July. The focus of these updates is on making shared classroom displays easier to use for teachers while giving IT administrators more control over managing devices. One of the key additions is the Samsung Account Management Solution (AMS). In many schools, multiple teachers share the same interactive display throughout the day, which means signing in and setting everything up can become repetitive. With AMS, teachers can log in by scanning a QR code or tapping an NFC-enabled ID card. Once signed in, their personalised workspace, including wallpapers, bookmarks, app shortcuts, and files, can be instantly accessed through Home Personalisation. Samsung has also included a screen lock feature, allowing teachers to lock the display if they need to step away briefly. Furthermore, the company is also updating its Education Portal with new tools designed for school IT administrators. The portal will allow IT administrators to register teachers, enrol devices, and manage user access from a central dashboard. Administrators can also link NFC cards to teacher accounts, making sign-ins quicker across shared displays. Another addition is a Tags feature that lets schools organise displays by building or classroom. Those tags can also be used to send emergency notifications to selected Samsung Interactive Displays through compatible platforms such as InformaCast and Raptor. Moreover, the tech giant's AI Assistant is gaining several new features aimed at supporting everyday classroom tasks such as lesson planning and classroom engagement. One of the features is Circle to Search, which lets teachers circle text or images on the display to quickly find related information, videos, or web results without interrupting the lesson. The content can then be brought into Samsung Whiteboard. Another feature, Live Transcript, converts spoken lessons into real-time captions, which could be useful for students with hearing impairments or those in multilingual classrooms. The AI Assistant also introduces AI Summary and AI Quiz. The summary tool creates summaries of recorded lessons, while AI Quiz generates questions based on lesson content so teachers can quickly check how well students are following along. Teachers signed in through Samsung AMS can also return to their previous AI-generated lesson materials without logging in again. Alongside the software updates, Samsung has expanded its Android-based Interactive Display range with three new models: the WAF-S, WAFX-PS, and WAHX-M. The WAF-S and WAFX-PS ship with Android 16, bringing updates to security, accessibility, and overall usability while maintaining compatibility with Google's education services including Google Classroom and Google Drive through EDLA certification. Meanwhile, the new WAHX-M is the biggest addition to the lineup, introducing a 98-inch display for larger spaces such as lecture halls and conference rooms. It will also be available in 65-inch, 75-inch and 86-inch sizes. Samsung says the WAHX-M further includes on-device AI features such as voice commands, text-to-speech, and an AI calculator, alongside support for Samsung AMS and AI Assistant. Samsung AI Assistant has been available since April, while Samsung AMS and the updated Education Portal will begin rolling out in July.
    • Apple's newest AirTag 2 gets first big discount

      By JayZJay · Posted

      It's been $24 (single) or $89 (4-pack) for many days on both Amazon and Walmart as far as I know. That isn't a big discount. If these end up like the 1st gen, the 4-pack will routinely get down around $80, give or take a dollar. I think they have even hit $69 at times.
    • Microsoft brings Claude to its own Azure infrastructure, powered by Nvidia GB300 Blackwell

      By Karthik Mudaliar · Posted

      Microsoft brings Claude to its own Azure infrastructure, powered by Nvidia GB300 Blackwell by Karthik Mudaliar Anthropic's Claude models are now generally available in Microsoft Foundry on Azure and are running on Nvidia's GB300 Blackwell Ultra systems. Nvidia wrote in its announcement that the models are hosted on Microsoft Azure and accelerated by GB300 Blackwell Ultra GPUs, with Quantum-X800 InfiniBand networking used to support larger agentic systems and specialized sub-agents that can operate across business domains. This is great for customers and enterprises that want to build autonomous and domain-specific AI agents using Claude without moving outside Microsoft’s cloud platform. Microsoft currently offers Claude models in Foundry in two forms: “Hosted on Azure,” which runs end-to-end on Azure infrastructure and is generally available, and “Hosted on Anthropic infrastructure,” which remains in preview. This separation is quite important for organizations that have procurement, compliance, data processing, or internal governance requirements tied to Azure. Anthropic currently has 11 Claude models listed in Microsoft Foundry, including Opus 4.8, Sonnet 4.6, and even the unavailable Mythos and Fable models. Billing is handled through Claude Consumption Units (CCUs). Microsoft says CCU is an invoicing unit for Claude models in Foundry, with token usage converted using Anthropic’s published per-model token rates. The usage is billed through Azure Marketplace just like models from other distributors and appears on the customer's Azure invoice, while eligible spend can count against a Microsoft Azure Consumption Commitment. For starters, GB300 NVL72 is a rack-scale, fully liquid-cooled system that combines 72 Blackwell Ultra GPUs and 36 Grace CPUs. Nvidia has listed 37TB of fast memory, 130TB/s of NVLink bandwidth, and FP4 Tensor Core performance of up to 1,440 petaflops with sparsity. The deal is also part of a three-way partnership between Microsoft, Nvidia, and Anthropic. Under the deal, Anthropic has committed to buying $30 billion in Azure compute capacity and contracting additional capacity up to one gigawatt. Nvidia and Microsoft also said they would invest up to $10 billion and $5 billion in Anthropic, respectively.
    • WhatsApp is getting usernames, and you can reserve your preferred one now

      By Fiza Ali · Posted

      WhatsApp is getting usernames, and you can reserve your preferred one now by Fiza Ali Sharing your phone number isn't always something you want to do, especially with people you've just met. Whether it's someone from a class, a local community group, or a sports team chat, handing over your number can feel like giving away more personal information than necessary. That's exactly the problem WhatsApp is trying to solve with its upcoming usernames feature. The company has announced that users can now reserve a unique WhatsApp username ahead of the feature's wider rollout later this year. Once usernames become available, they'll let people connect without revealing their phone numbers. It's a change that makes a lot of sense for group chats. Right now, everyone in the group can see your phone number. With usernames enabled, that won't necessarily be the case when someone contacts you for the first time. WhatsApp says it's opening username reservations early because more than three billion people use the app, meaning plenty of people are likely to want the same usernames. Reserving one now gives users a better chance of securing the name they actually want before the feature launches more broadly. If your preferred username is already taken, WhatsApp will also offer a built-in username generator to suggest available alternatives. The feature isn't only aimed at individual users. Creators, businesses, and organisations will be able to claim the same username they already use on Instagram or Facebook, making it easier to keep a consistent identity across Meta's apps. Furthermore, privacy is a big part of how WhatsApp is introducing usernames. There won't be a public directory where people can browse or search for usernames. Instead, people will need to know your exact username before they can start a conversation with you. Additionally, users can also choose to enable a username key, which adds another layer of control by requiring people to enter that key before sending a message. Once the feature rolls out, people who choose to use a username will no longer have their phone number shown when messaging a person or business for the first time. If you want to reserve a username, make sure you're running the latest version of WhatsApp, then head to Settings > Account > Username. The tech giant says usernames will roll out gradually over the coming months, and users will receive an in-app notification when the feature becomes available in their country.

  • Recent Achievements

    • Reacting Well
      NovaEdgeX earned a badge
      Reacting Well
    • Week One Done
      NovaEdgeX earned a badge
      Week One Done
    • One Year In
      BA the Curmudgeon earned a badge
      One Year In
    • Conversation Starter
      rosiecharles earned a badge
      Conversation Starter
    • First Post
      KMilenkoski1202 earned a badge
      First Post

  • Popular Contributors

    1. 1
      +primortal
      536
    2. 2
      +Edouard
      269
    3. 3
      PsYcHoKiLLa
      150
    4. 4
      Steven P.
      98
    5. 5
      macoman
      65
    Show More

  • Tell a friend

    Love Neowin? Tell a friend!