Legal issue of Kickstart ROMs

[amiga1260]

I own the original kickstart ROM 3.1 and 1.3. Can I use these ROM images legally for WHDLoad?

I ask this question, because I want to know, if this option is legally. Or do I need to buy Amiga Forever to be legally?

[CSixx]

Yes you can.

[amiga1260]

Thank you for your answer.

[Pentad]

Does anyone know who actually owns the Kickstart Roms and source code?  Is it Amiga, Inc?   Do they know??  :-)

[persia]

Yes, at least currently, Amiga Inc owns the ROMs and Cloanto and Hyperion have rights to distribute them.

[KThunder]

Cloanto probably knows. It might actually be a couple different entities. Gateway might own certain IP. Amiga Inc. might. Lets see here anyone want a chunk? Hyperion has some rights to something Ainc can't legally take back or something.

ah persia beat me to the punch. well IIRC gateway still has some IP involvement too, probably some patents they still hold but dont do much with

[Rob]

Yes, at least currently, Amiga Inc owns the ROMs and Cloanto and Hyperion have rights to distribute them.

I don't think Hyperion has the rights to distribute the ROMs.

[KThunder]

Hyperion has some rights to develop and release os4. I think Amiga inc tried to take that away from them and Hyperion took them to court and won.

If you have an Amiga or roms or Amiga Forever you have the right to use the rom files.

[Darrin]

So when it comes to selling "real" Kickstart ROM chips (from the likes of AmigaKit, etc) the who do they get permission from and who is making them?

[Darrin]

One of the reasons I ask is because I wonder whether Minimig type products could be sold with an optional pre-configured SD Card with Kickstart ROM images and/or Workbench Hard File(s) installed if they are sold with real ROM chips and floppy disks.

Or, even cheaper, sold with a link and code for Amiga Forever "Value Edition" which would only add $10 to the price.

[kolla]

Except that the Minimig firmware that people typically use is not capable of using the "encripled" ROMs that come with AmigaForever.

[Darrin]

Except that the Minimig firmware that people typically use is not capable of using the "encripled" ROMs that come with AmigaForever.

They may be encrypted, but they are still the actual ROMs, so putting "clean" versons on the SD Card with encrypted versons in Amiga Forever shouldn't matter, should it?.  After all, you can rip clean versions of the ROMs from Amiga forever by running ROM-ripper software from within a running Workbench.

[psxphill]

They may be encrypted, but they are still the actual ROMs, so putting "clean" versons on the SD Card with encrypted versons in Amiga Forever shouldn't matter, should it?. After all, you can rip clean versions of the ROMs from Amiga forever by running ROM-ripper software from within a running Workbench.

If you're talking 100% legally worldwide for commercial use then no, they aren't the same.
 
You'd need to get a license from the rights holder, unless another licensee has the rights to ship unencrypted kickstart roms & you can do a deal with them.
 
Doing a deal with Amiga Forever and getting minimig to work off encrypted images would probably be your best bet. Whether you'd still be able to bundle the file on the SD card, I don't know.

[AndyLandy]

So when it comes to selling "real" Kickstart ROM chips (from the likes of AmigaKit, etc) the who do they get permission from and who is making them?

Odds are they're old stock that were licensed back in the day.

[Darrin]

If you're talking 100% legally worldwide for commercial use then no, they aren't the same.
 
You'd need to get a license from the rights holder, unless another licensee has the rights to ship unencrypted kickstart roms & you can do a deal with them.
 
Doing a deal with Amiga Forever and getting minimig to work off encrypted images would probably be your best bet. Whether you'd still be able to bundle the file on the SD card, I don't know.

I wonder if the Amiga Forever ROMs are encrypted as part of the agreement to use them or to stop people using them with free UAE.

I figured that if you "own" the soft Kickstart then you should be able to use it on whatever machine you want to (PC, Minimig, etc) and decrypt it if you wish.

If that's the case then supplying it decrypted on an SD Card along with the Amiga Forever package shouldn't break the rules as long as it is exactly the same version of the Kickstart, should it?