[PyQt] Licensing PyQt

[Kyle Altendorf]

On August 14, 2019 4:36:34 AM EDT, Phil Thompson <phil at riverbankcomputing.com> wrote:
>On 14/08/2019 09:23, Adrian Sochacki wrote:
>> Hey,
>> I have trouble understanding the GNU GPL v3 licenese in combination
>of 
>> PyQt.
>> Riverbank says himself:
>> "PyQt is dual licensed on all supported platforms under the GNU GPL
>v3 
>> and
>> the Riverbank Commercial License."(
>> https://riverbankcomputing.com/software/pyqt/intro)
>> Do I have to treat my script under the GNU GPL v3 license the moment
>I
>> import the PyQt module into my script?
>
>Yes.

If you don't use the commercial license, then yes.  If you use the commercial license then the whole point would be to not have to be under the GPL.

>> I want to write a .ui file for my python sript and would want to
>treat 
>> the
>> .ui file with the GNU GPL v3 license and my own written script 
>> differently
>> if it is possible. Then I would load the .ui file via my script.
>
>You would have to dual license your .ui file so that you could use it
>in 
>your script without the GPL infecting it. Other users of the .ui file 
>could then only use it in GPL-compatible code (I assume that is your 
>intent). As your own script would not have a GPL-compatible license 
>(otherwise what's the point?) you would need a commercial PyQt license.

The GPL does not infect data files, neither input nor output.  The .ui file itself need have no license relationship to the source code.  A pyuic5 generated .py would import pyqt and would presumably be imported into your otherwise GPL application so the .py would end up being GPL.  If both of those were not the case the resulting file would be free of any GPL restrictions and owned entirely by the author, ready for any license they choose. Also, if the .ui were loaded dynamically then there would be no ui-related file getting infected by the GPL.

Cheers,
-kyle