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Nokia

Nokia Open Source License 1.0a

The Nokia Open Source License 1.0a is derived from MPL 1.1. It is reciprocal, not permissive: modified covered files carry a source duty.

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What it does

The Nokia Open Source License, NOKOS 1.0a, is derived from the Mozilla Public License 1.1. That makes it reciprocal rather than permissive. Copyleft means the license requires that changes to the covered code stay available under the same license, and here the scope is per file. Your own separate files stay yours and can be closed. The source of any Modification you make to Covered Code has to be available under NOKOS to the people who receive your distribution.

Details

If nobody on your team touches the covered files, this license behaves close to a permissive one. Combine it with your code, ship it, keep your own source private. The moment someone patches a covered file and you distribute the result, the changed source has to be available under the same license. That is an engineering duty with your release date attached to it. There is no network trigger: a Mozilla-style license attaches to distribution, so a hosted service that hands out no copies publishes nothing.

Pros

  • You can link the library from closed code in the way the license describes.
  • File-level reciprocity is easier to isolate than GPL-style whole-work copyleft.

Cons

  • Vendoring or statically linking can pull more of your tree into the covered set than a dynamic link would.
  • The source-offer duty is real the moment you distribute binaries that include modified covered files.

What it allows and requires

Choose a category to see the full grant in one scannable list. Permissions show what the license allows, limits show what it withholds, and obligations show the conditions your release process must satisfy.

Permissions

  • Commercial use

    You may ship the code inside a paid product. The license does not restrict commercial use.

  • Modify

    You may change the code, including keeping those changes private, unless a later obligation says otherwise.

  • Distribute

    You may give copies to others. Distribution is what usually turns notice and source duties into real work.

  • Sublicense

    You may include the code under your own product terms, so long as you still meet this license's conditions.

  • Private use

    Use inside your company, including internal forks, does not by itself trigger distribution duties.

What Nokia requires when you ship

When you distribute a binary that includes Nokia code, notice still travels with the copy, and the corresponding source has to be available under the same license. Internal use without a copy leaving the company is a different situation. The list below is the shipping work: what a recipient of that binary can demand, and what you record so a buyer can see it.

  1. You are meeting the source duty when the source of every covered file you modified is available under NOKOS to the people who receive your distribution.

  2. You are clear on your own code when your additions live in separate files, because the reciprocal duty follows the covered files rather than the whole product.

  3. You are meeting the notice condition when the license text and the existing notices stay with the covered files you pass on to anyone else.

  4. You have nothing to publish for a hosted service that distributes no copies, because this license attaches its duty to distribution and not to running the code.

  5. You have a question for counsel rather than a checklist item when GPL code sits in the same product, because MPL 1.1 style licenses are generally read as GPL-incompatible.

The duties named in Nokia

Notice still travels with the copy. On top of that, Nokia names a source duty. These are the conditions in the text. The how-to above is when they become real work.

Include copyright

Keep the copyright line with every copy or substantial portion you distribute.

Include license

Keep the license text with every copy or substantial portion you distribute. A web page is not a substitute for notices inside a shipped artifact.

Things to be aware of

  • The license is read as permissive because a large vendor published it and it has patent language. It is Mozilla-derived, and the covered files carry a source duty.
  • A quick patch lands in a covered file and nobody records it. Track edits to covered files the same way you would track them for an MPL dependency.
  • Teams wait for the tool to raise a source offer item. The license catalog still records this license as permissive, so no item appears and the duty stays yours to run.

What the Nokia Open Source License 1.0a does not do

Search results often flatten Nokia Open Source License 1.0a into a slogan. These are the usual misreads. Nokia is a grant with conditions, not a permission to skip the paperwork below.

  • the Nokia Open Source License does not force you to open your whole application. The reciprocal duty stays on the covered files.
  • It is not "permissive with extra paperwork." Change a covered file and ship it, and that file's source has to be available under the same license.

How Nokia differs from nearby licenses

These licenses are often confused with Nokia, but their release duties differ. Each row summarizes what the license requires when you ship. Open the linked page for the full checklist.

Nokia
The Nokia Open Source License 1.0a is derived from MPL 1.1. It is reciprocal, not permissive: modified covered files carry a source duty.
MPL-1.1
The 1998 Mozilla license. Its source duty attaches to the files you modified, not to every MPL file you ship, and it has no GPL bridge.
MPL-2.0
File-scoped copyleft. The MPL files stay open when you ship a binary, modified or not. Your own separate files stay yours.
MIT
MIT lets you ship the code inside a closed, paid product. The one condition is that the copyright line and license text travel with every copy.

Common questions about Nokia Open Source License 1.0a

Answers to common questions about what Nokia Open Source License 1.0a requires, when its duties apply, and what evidence belongs with a release.

What is the Nokia Open Source License 1.0a?

The Nokia Open Source License, NOKOS 1.0a, is derived from the Mozilla Public License 1.1. That makes it reciprocal rather than permissive. Copyleft means the license requires that changes to the covered code stay available under the same license, and here the scope is per file. Your own separate files stay yours and can be closed. The source of any Modification you make to Covered Code has to be available under NOKOS to the people who receive your distribution.

What does Nokia require when you ship a product?

You are meeting the source duty when the source of every covered file you modified is available under NOKOS to the people who receive your distribution. You are clear on your own code when your additions live in separate files, because the reciprocal duty follows the covered files rather than the whole product. You are meeting the notice condition when the license text and the existing notices stay with the covered files you pass on to anyone else. You have nothing to publish for a hosted service that distributes no copies, because this license attaches its duty to distribution and not to running the code. You have a question for counsel rather than a checklist item when GPL code sits in the same product, because MPL 1.1 style licenses are generally read as GPL-incompatible.

Does hosting a product that uses Nokia trigger extra duties?

Hosting alone usually does not trigger the source duty for Nokia. Shipping a binary, a container, or an on-prem build does. Notice still travels with any copy you hand over.

Can I keep my application closed if I use Nokia?

Nokia is library-scoped copyleft. Your application can stay closed if recipients can replace the library with their own build. Static linking makes that expensive. The library itself still ships with corresponding source and notices. Confirm the linking story on the component, then record it.

What is corresponding source for Nokia?

Corresponding source is the source a recipient needs to build and run the same binary, including scripts and interface files the license names. Hosting a repository URL can be an offer. The offer has to match what you actually shipped. SourceTrust records that a person on your team confirmed the offer. It does not publish your source and does not host a mirror.

How is Nokia different from Mozilla Public License 1.1?

Nokia asks this: The Nokia Open Source License 1.0a is derived from MPL 1.1. It is reciprocal, not permissive: modified covered files carry a source duty. Mozilla Public License 1.1 asks this: The 1998 Mozilla license. Its source duty attaches to the files you modified, not to every MPL file you ship, and it has no GPL bridge. Open the Mozilla Public License 1.1 page for what that license requires when you ship. Do not treat the SPDX ids as interchangeable because the short names look similar.

Where do I record Nokia for a buyer?

SourceTrust fetches the published artifact, extracts the license files, and compares that text against the declared SPDX id, so the real NOKOS wording ends up on the component. One thing to know here: the license catalog still records Nokia as permissive, so no source offer item is added to the project checklist and publishing is not held for it. This guide says weak copyleft because the license text does. Until the catalog row is corrected, treat the modification source duty as a step you track yourself. The source offer guide linked below describes that step, even though no item fires for Nokia today.

Where do I record Nokia for a buyer?

SourceTrust fetches the published artifact, extracts the license files, and compares that text against the declared SPDX id, so the real NOKOS wording ends up on the component. One thing to know here: the license catalog still records Nokia as permissive, so no source offer item is added to the project checklist and publishing is not held for it.

This guide says weak copyleft because the license text does. Until the catalog row is corrected, treat the modification source duty as a step you track yourself.

The source offer guide linked below describes that step, even though no item fires for Nokia today. Read /docs/reviewing-component for the review flow.

See also

The hub is the pillar for this cluster. Sibling licenses are the other spokes. Product FAQ links explain how SourceTrust records the duty, not the license text itself.

Practical guidance for procurement review, not legal advice. Confirm high-stakes use with counsel.

Ship the proof.

Import Nokia Open Source License 1.0a and the rest of what you ship. Free to import and review. You only pay when you publish.

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