The most recent (and future) versions of FLAME GPU 2 are available under a dual license (AGPL v3.0 and commercial). Previous versions of FLAME GPU were distributed under MIT.
Why a dual license model for FLAME GPU 2
Developing and maintaining research software is hard, especially software like FLAME GPU which requires highly skilled GPU developers. Very little funding exists for development or maintenance. FLAME GPU 2 was extremely fortunate to receive a large chunk of funding for its initial development via a Research Software Engineering Fellowship. Funding to support new features is often sought through collaborative research projects with partners wishing to apply FLAME GPU to a new domain. As the software has become mature and stable it is becoming harder to seek research grants which look to add novel new features (constituting software engineering research). Instead funding is required to maintain what we already have.
Commitment to Open Source
First and foremost FLAME GPU is committed to open source, in particular in ensuring that the results of FLAME GPU simulations are FAIR and that the software itself remains open and accessible, preventing it from becoming proprietary. If you use FLAME GPU as part of your research and want to publish the resulting model and outputs you can do so under the AGPL v3.0 terms.
A Commercial License
The move towards a dual license allows us to pursue commercial routes for FLAME GPU to generate revenue to support the software and to help understand its industrial impact. As a FLAME GPU user, this means that if you do not want to comply with the AGPL terms then a commercial license would be required. I.e. If you want to build a model or product using FLAME GPU and distribute this without releasing the source code then a commercial would eb needed. There is not a fixed license fee, instead this is negotiable depending on your use case and may require terms to help us understand and demonstrate the impact of the software. If you would like to find out more then please contact us.
FAQ
Q: Why are you changing it now?
A: The software is reaching a mature and stable point where alternative sources of income are required to support its maintenance.
Q: Can I use the old MIT version?
A: Of course but updates to the software will only be issued under the new license terms.
Q: Can I have a commercial license?
A: Yes. Speak to us.
Q: Can I have a free commercial license?
A: Possibly. Speak to us.
Q: Can I fund FLAME GPUs development without a commercial license?
A: Yes of course. Speak to us.
Q: MIT was much better. Don’t you agree?
A: MIT is great but we need to find ways to fund FLAME GPUs development or it will lose support.
Q: Can I contribute to the software?
A: Yes. See our contribution guidelines. We will require a contributor license agreement which allows us permission to distribute any contribution under the dual license terms.
Q: Can you tell me if my software is compliant with AGPL?
We can not. You should seek specialist advice.