Qualcomm rewrote Arduino’s TOS, and the community is not taking it well @TechSpot

Alfonso Maruccia over on TechSpot weighs in on the Terms of Service changes Arduino has made after being acquired by Qualcomm.

When Qualcomm announced its acquisition of Arduino in October, the move was met with lukewarm enthusiasm. Since then, the UK chip designer has implemented significant changes to Arduino’s terms of service, prompting concerns within the community that the moves could effectively signal the end of the platform’s open-source ethos.

Key updates reportedly include a perpetual license on any code or board designs uploaded by users, surveillance-style monitoring of AI features, and a prohibition on research into potential patent infringements. Additionally, Arduino can now retain account usernames indefinitely after account termination, while all user data is integrated into Qualcomm’s global data ecosystem.

“Several sections effectively reshape Arduino from an open community platform into a tightly controlled corporate service with deep data extraction built in,” Adafruit Industries said.

Arduino stated that the revised documents are intended to improve clarity, ensure regulatory compliance, and support innovation. They are also designed to guide the platform in navigating emerging IT trends, including AI and new commercial opportunities.

Read the article here.

from Adafruit Industries – Makers, hackers, artists, designers and engineers! https://ift.tt/vsIuzkm
via IFTTT