We, same as most of the developers, are keeping up with controversy about Unity engine runtime fee policy. And we, trade union of ICT workers including game developers, would like to make a statement.
Our believe is that any change regarding licensing policies of Unity technologies which could be described as:
- retroactively affecting users and existing install bases
- forcing Unity licensees to unwillingly include tracking software in their applications
- effectively disqualifying licensees to pick their business model
- done in highly non-transparent fashion without any prior discussion with community
is unnacceptable
We believe that every change in licensing agreement should be result of discussion between all parties. Licensees should have an option to keep using software under current licensing terms under which they entered the agreement. Not only but especially if it affects their livelihood.
Developers should have control over their product and freedom to choose whether to include tracking software or not. It’s highly unprecedented for tool provider to force developers to spy on their users. This also makes it impossible to deliver tracking and DRM-free software.
Install based fees have an unequal impact based on business model. Free-to-play, non-profit, demos and trials, hobby users are more affected, especially when their install base is unproportionaly large in relation to their revenue.
Although we understand that sometimes it’s necessary to change terms of services, it should never be done in a way which invalidates preexisting agreements. And it should be done only after discussion with the community.
It is also crystal clear that those changes proposed by Unity were not done in good conscience if they were accompanied by deletion of license tracking repository.
We hope that Unity technologies seriously reconsiders their approach and starts listening to their users and starts working on repairing relationship with their community.