There's an a**hole selling LibreOffice, is it legal??

Shulito · January 23, 2019, 12:42am

Hi. There’s an a**hole selling “installation service” of LibreOffice here https://articulo.mercadolibre.com.ar/MLA-611074507-reemplace-microsoft-office-por-una-version-gratuita-_JM?quantity=1#reco_item_pos=2&reco_backend=machinalis-seller-items&reco_backend_type=low_level&reco_client=vip-seller_items-above&reco_id=e9952181-e44a-4e07-94ef-0b7b8483552e, which is kind of a local eBay in Argentina and Brazil.

What it says in the description is that they are not selling LibreOffice, they are selling the installation service.

Is this legal?? If not, what are the arguments to use so I can report it to the site.

mikekaganski · January 23, 2019, 5:35am

Why not?

LibreOffice is free software, and nobody can prevent you from downloading from official site. On the other hand, nobody can deny another’s right to offer you help in installing/educating/support, for money, if you need that, as long as they don’t limit your freedom that is guaranteed by software license (I cannot read that site, so that last part is one thing that needs clarification). Another thing is that they must not create impression that LibreOffice is associated (e.g., owned) by them, so that customer clearly knows that the software itself is separate from their offer.

However, LibreOffice is quite complex software, and The Document Foundation established a certification program which goal is to ensure competence of those who provide (e.g., sell) their services around LibreOffice. So possibly it’s good to check if the seller is among the list of certified professionals, and choose from that list if in doubt.

gabix · January 23, 2019, 7:25am

The point of view of the Free Software Foundation:

Selling a copy of a free program is legitimate, and we encourage it.