bluebox home | Services | Agreement negotiation | Software licensing
bluebox can assist QUT researchers to determine appropriate strategies for the distribution of software developed at the university. There are a number of different options available, including:
Academic licensing (non-commercial)
- An important way to provide access to QUT software, web tools, content, databases, and digital media.
- Available to qualified licensees (e.g. other universities, and academic institutions).
- Capitalises upon the reputational and research benefits associated with the publication and adoption of research software.
- Has the potential to increase external funding, promotion and collaboration with external institutions.
Open source licensing
- Not limited to non-commercial software.
- Relevant to situations that allow open source software to be combined with commercialisation practises.
- A variety of licences are available, including academic, permissive (BSD) and reciprocal (GPL) licences.
- Appropriateness of distribution strategy and open source licence determined on a case by case basis.
- Further information, options and considerations can be found in our dedicated open source section.
Commercial licensing
- Applicable should you determine that your software has commercial value.
- Can be arranged directly to end users or through distributors.
- Payment varies from product to product, generally between a fixed fee (annual or single payment), royalties, or combination of both.
- A number of commercial software licence templates are available.
- Includes evaluation licences for organisations that prefer to access the software for a limited period before purchasing a licence.
Dual licensing
- Incorporates both open source and commercial licences.
- Allows organisations to evaluate and use the software for research purposes.
- Must utilise a reciprocal open source licence that places restrictions on distribution that makes commercial use unfeasible.
- Can be supplemented with a subsequent commercial licence, for a fee, under terms that permit utilisation for commercial purposes.
There is no single right or wrong way to license software and every situation is unique.
If you have software that you would like to distribute via an academic, open source or commercial licence please contact us so we can work with you to determine the most suitable option.
