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For Commercial Partners

While our community releases are strictly GPLv3, AeroBeat-Workouts retains the copyright to the codebase. This allows us to offer Dual Licensing for commercial partners who need to bypass the restrictions of the GPL.

Dual Licensing Strategy

What is Dual Licensing?

Dual Licensing means the same code is available under two different licenses:

  1. Open Source (GPLv3): Free to use, but requires you to share your source code if you distribute it.
  2. Commercial (Proprietary): A paid license that allows you to keep your source code private, modify the engine freely, and deploy to closed platforms (like Consoles or Arcades).

Why would I need a Commercial License?

  • Closed Source Requirements: You are building a proprietary game (e.g., "Linkin Park Arcade Edition") and cannot share the source code for your specific gameplay logic or UI Shell.
  • Console NDAs: Sony, Nintendo, and Microsoft SDKs are under NDA and cannot be mixed with GPL open-source code repositories.
  • Legal Safety: You want a traditional software license agreement with indemnification, rather than relying on a community license.

How it Works

Because all contributors sign a Contributor License Agreement (CLA), AeroBeat-Workouts has the legal right to re-license the codebase.

  1. Contact Us: Reach out to discuss your project scope.
  2. License Grant: We provide a specific license grant for the repositories you need (e.g., aerobeat-assembly-*, aerobeat-ui-shell-*).
  3. Development: You fork the repositories privately. You can pull updates from the Open Source upstream, but you are not required to push your changes back.
  4. Funding: The licensing fees go directly into funding the core development team and maintaining the Open Source version.

Commercial FAQ

Q: Can I sell a game built on AeroBeat?

A: Yes. However, if you use the free Community Edition (GPLv3), you must release your game's source code to your players. If you wish to keep your source code private, you must purchase a Commercial License.

Q: Can I release on Consoles (Switch, PS5, Xbox)?

A: Not with the Community Edition. Console SDKs are protected by NDAs that are legally incompatible with the GPLv3 license. You need a Commercial License to legally deploy AeroBeat to consoles.

Q: Can I use the default songs and skins in my commercial game?

A: No. The content in our Art repositories (aerobeat-skins-*, aerobeat-avatars-*, etc.) is licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0 (Non-Commercial). You must replace these assets with your own art and music, or contact us to license specific assets.

Q: Does AeroBeat take a revenue cut?

A: The Open Source version is free. Commercial Licenses are negotiated based on the project scope (Flat fee or Royalty).

Q: I am a hardware vendor. Do I need a commercial license to write a driver?

A: No. Input drivers use MPL 2.0, which allows linking to proprietary SDKs. You can write and distribute a driver for your hardware without paying us or opening your SDK source code.