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Porting Mupen64Plus to Android

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paulscode

paulscode

New member
Brad Geng has lodged a false DMCA complaint, resulting in Google removing my apps from the Google Play Market. The text of that complaint:

AutoDetectedBrowser: Firefox 1
AutoDetectedOS: Intel Macintosh OS X
IIILanguage: zh-Hans
IssueType: lr_dmca
Language: zh-Hans
agree1: checked
agree: checked
companyname:
country_residence: CN
description_of_copyrighted_work: Mupen64plus
dmca_signature: Huaining Geng
dmca_signature_date_day: 30
dmca_signature_date_month: 3
dmca_signature_date_year: 2012
full_name: Huaining Geng
geolocation: CN
hidden_dmca_category: image
hidden_product: androidmarket
location_of_copyrighted_work: http://code.google.com/p/mupen64plus/
represented_copyright_holder: Mupen64plus
url_box_1:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.n64.pro.emulation
url_box_2:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=paulscode.android.mupen64plus.free
url_box_3:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=paulscode.android.mupen64plus
url_box_4:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=paulscode.android.mupen64plus.xperiaplay

What this basically says is that my apps (as well as "N64 Pro Emulator") are illegal copies of Mupen64Plus! Mupen64Plus is copyrighted by the GNU GPL v2, which clearly allows derived works to be created. The obvious reason for this was to knock of all competition to his ad revenues he's getting from "N64 Player". I've sent a counter notification, but I have no idea how long it will take to process. For anyone interested, here is the text of my counter notification:

The DMCA complaint sites Mupen64Plus as the copyrighted work. It links to http://code.google.com/p/mupen64plus/ If you go to that website, you can clearly see under "Code license", that this work is licensed by the GNU GPL v2. This is a common open-source license which authorizes derived works to be created and distributed following certain terms. I have abided by all terms of this license. See http://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-2.0.html for more details. Finally, the individual who lodged the DMCA complaint, Brad Geng, has a copy of my work listed on the Google Play Market with advertisements slapped on it. This is the very work that he is complaining is in violation of the DMCA. Mr. Geng has it listed as "N64 Player". Clearly, he lodged this false DMCA complaint to remove my original work that he copied, and to eliminate all competition to his ad revenues. (Please note that the "Add an additional field" script is broken under "Material in Question". Please refer to the DCMA complaint for all three of my apps that were suspended)

Everyone who agrees with me and has an Android device, please install "N64 Player" from the Google Play Market, leave a 1-star rating and nasty comment, and mark my rating comment as "helpful".

Also, I'd like to discuss if anyone here disagrees with me, or has a problem with my app. In particular, I've never actually had a discussion with Richard42 on what his feelings are with regards to the app. Now might be a good time to reflect and address any concerns that people might have before re-listing the app.
 

smcd

Active member
Sorry to hear about the issue you're having. It seems odd - I wonder if the guy "Brad Geng" has legal standing to file a DMCA notice anyhow? It's my understanding the person filing the complaint is to be the owner or a duly authorized representative party for the item in question. Did Brad Geng commit any code to Mupen64 / Mupen64plus?
 

Surkow

Member
Copyright holders that have contributed to Mupen64Plus have sent DMCA notices to yongzh previously. This will not happen with your application because you have shown your intent to share your patches upstream. The only thing I'm unsure about is if the Android Market actually clashes with the GPL in general. I don't think you can legally release GPL programs in the App Store from Apple.
 
OP
paulscode

paulscode

New member
I researched this a while, but I do not think Brad Geng committed any code to Mupen64 or Mupen64Plus (unless he used an alias, which is a possibility of course). That said, Mupen64Plus is licensed by the GPL, so as long as I am adhering to the terms of that license, neither he nor anyone else on the Mupen64Plus team have grounds for a DMCA complaint, even if I weren't planning to share patches back upstream after the app is out of Beta (I am, but just saying).

From what I understand, the reason GPL apps can't be released in Apple's App Store, is because of the following section of the GPL:

Each time you redistribute the Program (or any work based on the Program), the recipient automatically receives a license from the original licensor to copy, distribute or modify the Program subject to these terms and conditions. You may not impose any further restrictions on the recipients’ exercise of the rights granted herein.

The Apple App Store imposes copy restrictions and others, which violate this agreement. These restrictions are not in the Android developers agreement, as far as I can see (I read it carefully a number of times to find anything that might conflict between the licenses, but I couldn't find any). The agreement gives Google some more rights to use and retain pieces for advertisement and testing purposes, but extra rights are not the same thing as restrictions, so that doesn't violate the GPL either.

I don't mean to bash Yongzh at all here, but just to clarify about N64oid, Yongzh actually IS a perfectly valid candidate for DMCA complaints, because he is in violation of the following section of the GPL by not releasing the full source code for N64oid:

If identifiable sections of that work are not derived from the Program, and can be reasonably considered independent and separate works in themselves, then this License, and its terms, do not apply to those sections when you distribute them as separate works. But when you distribute the same sections as part of a whole which is a work based on the Program, the distribution of the whole must be on the terms of this License, whose permissions for other licensees extend to the entire whole, and thus to each and every part regardless of who wrote it.

Yongzh could actually easily get around this problem by releasing his closed-source plug-ins separately from the core app rather than distributing them as parts of a whole. If he were to do that, then there would be no grounds for DMCA complaints against him either.

Anyway, it seems the most obvious reason for Brad's DMCA complaint against my app is less to do with any alleged GPL violation, and more to do with wanting to remove competition and increase ad revenues.
 

Surkow

Member
You have certainly done your homework. ;)

I don't see any reason why you shouldn't try to reinstate the application. Your future plans of selling a closed source frontend for Mupen64Plus will be perfectly legal.
 

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