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CS Professional · Artificial Intelligence, Data Analytics and Cyber Security - Laws and Practice · Softwares and Software Security

Which feature distinguishes a copyleft open-source licence such as the GNU General Public License from a permissive licence such as MIT?

A copyleft licence such as the GPL requires that derivative works, when distributed, be licensed on the same terms, preserving freedom downstream. Permissive licences like MIT impose no such condition and allow derivatives to become proprietary. Authors keep copyright, and commercial use is permitted.

  1. ADerivative works distributed must be released under the same licence termsCorrect
  2. BThe software may never be used commercially
  3. CThe author gives up all copyright ownership
  4. DSource code cannot be modified by users

Explanation

Copyleft requires that modified or derived versions, when distributed, carry the same licence terms, keeping them free. Permissive licences like MIT allow derivatives to be made proprietary. Open-source licences do allow commercial use and modification, and authors retain copyright, so the other options are wrong.

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