Very proud to participate tomorrow at @tdose
The future of the Internet entails A LOT of challenges. How #FreeSoftware can help in creating better technology?
Well, #DeviceNeutrality is a good conversation starter.
Lucas Lasota
Free Software & IT Law | Own views only.
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Publications: https://www.zotero.org/lucaslasota
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The @fsfe joined forces with the @ItaLinuxSociety to help users to get a refund of #windows licenses.
Inspired by the experience of implacable volunteers who have faced litigation and court cases to get their license refund, #Refund4Freedom aims to raise awareness to this very inconvenient hurdle faced by consumers.
In software development there are a lot of instances where it is not clear if a determined piece of code is protected by copyright, or who is the author, or how this code should be handled. The @fsfe has published a comprehensive analysis on the the threshold of originality for copyrightable source code.
I just have learned that @Framasoft has an awesome PDF manipulation online tool!
More democratic control over digital assets and infrastructure is a demand growing globally. Similarly to the #DMA in the EU, we are seeing an increased number of regulatory initiatives around the globe tackling big tech monopolistic power. Happy to see this agenda progressing in the US.
https://www.theverge.com/news/662180/app-store-freedom-act-apple-third-party-app-stores
Very interesting case of #cybersecurity and #FreeSoftware involving access to source code. My colleagues at @fsfe had delivered some insights on a case involving trains.
What happened to 'interoperability by design'?
In December, 2024, the @EUCommission had proposed an interesting path for Apple to achieve higher standards of interoperability under the #DMA. The final version excluded several of these requirements.
A coalition of organisations and experts have weighted the positives and negatives of the final decision of how developers can request #interoperability from #Apple.
Together with @annabonnie and @lexelas from @fsfe we dive into what is necessary in terms of social movement to make changes for digital rights. We took #RouterFreedom as example of a side struggle for #NetNeutrality and what are the costs in terms of engagement and resources to make a change in favor of consumer choice.
Today we had a #DMA session for #FreeSoftware (#OpenSource) organizations. I was particularly happy to see the participation of Free Software app stores, browsers and operating systems interested in fair competition. There is hope in pushing the enforcement of DMA further :)
#DSL will be deprecated in Germany in the next 8 years.
Hopefully we have #RouterFreedom for fiber networks in the country.
My colleague Gabriel from @fsfe has prepared an interesting guide related to #copyright and deceased contributors of #freesoftware projects. This is a topic I have not heard much, but something worthy to check out.
This year I am unfortunately sick and could not properly join the nice festivities of #iLoveFS, but I do want to thank @eighthave from @fdroidorg, @marcprux from #AppFair, Benjamin from @Tor, Marc from #GNUTaler, the nice people from #iSH and many others for their volunteer time and expertise in helping us to understand the technical and legal aspects of #interoperability, #AppStore and #Safari. With their support we are pushing #DeviceNeutrality in environments dominated by #Apple.
#RouterFreedom is the longest policy/legal project I have been working so far. While the @fsfe started in Germany way back in 2013, I joined later the party in Feb. 2019 to cover the efforts at EU level after the 2018 reform of EU telecommunications law.
Having Router Freedom confirmed after almost 6 years in Germany is a great achievement, also in a personal level. I am very grateful to a LOT of people helping us with technical, legal, policy and community management advises. The effort paid off!
In special a big shout out to @mxmehl, @lexelas and @kirschner who have been great fellows in this path.
Now we look to a broader picture. #DeviceNeutrality, #DMA, #satellite networks are posing new challenges for #NetNeutrality and the right of end-users to choose their own equipment for internet connection.
@theregister prepared a comprehensive coverage on @fsfe's positions regarding #Apple's compliance approach towards interoperability related to Art. 6(7) #DMA. Worthy reading.
https://www.theregister.com/2025/01/16/apple_dma_compliance_criticized/
@conservancy This is a great achievement for #RouterFreedom! @fsfe
@edri on #DMA case #Apple vs @EUCommission
Apple's dominance significantly distorts digital markets, harming not only market competition but also software freedom, the open internet, and ultimately digital democracy.
If the @fsfe is successful, Free Software developers will face fewer restrictions, gaining the ability to distribute software freely, enable side-loading, and demand interoperability with Apple’s systems.
Excellent article from @pluralistic on @fsfe take on #Apple under the #DMA
FSFE’s brief makes a series of legal arguments, rebutting Apple’s self-serving theories about what the DMA really means. FSFE shoots down Apple’s tired argument that copyrights and patents override any interoperability requirements. U.S. courts have been inconsistent on this issue, but we’re hopeful that the Court of Justice of the E.U. will reject the “intellectual property trump card.”
Even more importantly, FSFE makes moral and technical arguments about the importance of safeguarding the technological self-determination of users by letting them choose free software, and about why this is as safe – or safer – than giving Apple a veto over its customers’ software choices.
https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2024/10/eu-apple-let-users-choose-their-software-apple-nah
The national implementation of EU law is currently fragmented. In principle it is possible to say the Italian situation would be against the law, but no corrective mechanism can be enforced at the moment.
The situation with #RouterFreedom in Italy demonstrates that certification procedures involving internet access devices can negatively affect end-users. TIM's is charging at least 50k euro for allowing other operators to use their fiber modems (ONT) on TIM networks. This translates in less freedom of choice for consumers.
Client Info
Server: https://mastodon.social
Version: 2025.04
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