legal issues with selling themes

**strudders** · 02-20-2009, 06:25 AM

I am in the progress of making my own theme, what i want to find out is if i use icons from the vista os or the sample icons you get with plazmic, will it be illegal for me to sell this theme. I am trying to make my theme original but if i can make it easier for me then that would be great. I know there is a bit of debate about selling themes and how much they should be priced at, but i think there are themes out there being sold with apple and vista icons. Thanks for ya time

**Synergie** · 02-20-2009, 06:33 AM

This is a bit of a sticky issue... Those icons are licensed by Apple or Microfost... and I know that when people started to copy the iphone themes, Apple was threatening to go after them because of it.

Still, does that stop anyone from trying to make a few bucks? They will do it anyway until someone tells them to stop,... whether or not it's right or wrong.

Be your own judge. Personally, I dont think people should sell themes unless they theme ALL aspects of the theme themselves, and this includes their own icon design. Just throwing a layout together using someone elses artwork IMO should not be sold for profit.

The exception to this would be the commercial icon sets that you can purchase, and when you buy that set you have the rights to use it for commercial purposes (for profit) and there are many out there, some of them awesome if you are willing to pay.

Also, if you create a theme and offer it for free, but people donate for you to customize it for them etc, that is ok as well because you are not charging for the them, but for your services.

**strudders** · 02-20-2009, 06:45 AM

Thanks for the quick reply. I will try and make my own icons and see if i can sell it at a reasonable price. By the time im finished, the 2nd gen storm would have come out

**ThemeClones** · 02-20-2009, 06:49 AM

Also to add, if you look at the legal agreement located at the bottom of the page on [ plazmic ] , it states that you can use their supplied icons included with the cdk in themes that you create for profit.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

**Zachriel** · 02-20-2009, 10:17 AM

You should probably avoid trying to sell themes (even if you've made all the icons yourself) that is based on someone else's Intellectual Property.

**NickPampani** · 02-20-2009, 11:37 AM

there is no legal issues for asking for donation.

plus legaly your building a theme on an unofficial version of plazmic, a leak in which you do not have the rights to use anyway