[Anonymous]

Anonymous

#4412

I though you were allowed to remove the credits from every wordpress theme without having to pay?

Check out this screen shot: For the single licence they want 69 for the mixed licence they want $99 so they are charging an extra $30 just to remove the credit.

Screen Shot: http://i46.tinypic.com/vsj0qs.png

[Kenneth John Odle]

Kenneth John Odle

#28132

Anyone can create a WP theme and do whatever they want with it, but if you want to distribute it through the WP themes repository, then it has to be free. The themes available through the repository have also been checked for malicious code, I believe. There are plenty of themes and plugins out there that people sell or will give you for free, but which includes code that does weird things like boost their SEO (on your nickel) or redirect all your Google ad clicks to them instead of to you.

It’s generally best to stick with themes and plugins that are available from the repositories:

Themes: http://wordpress.org/extend/themes/

Plugins: http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/

(Links provided for those who aren’t aware of them.)

[Syahir Hakim]

Syahir Hakim

#28133

Quote:

I though you were allowed to remove the credits from every wordpress theme without having to pay?

This depends on the licence of the theme. All themes hosted on the WordPress.org theme repository are licensed under GPL or GPL-compatible licences. Those licences essentially allow you to do anything to the theme’s source codes, including removing the credit link.

However, commercial themes that you have to pay for are not necessarily released under GPL or GPL-compatible licences. Therefore, your rights with regard to the theme’s source codes and bundled resources may vary.

Having said that, there has been discussions previously, especially by WordPress core developers and even Matt himself, that all WordPress themes and plugins are bound to be licensed under GPL or GPL-compatible licence. The reason for this is because WordPress itself is licensed under GPL, and one of the clauses of GPL is that all derivative works of a GPL-licensed software must be licensed under GPL as well. Since themes and plugins are essentially derivatives of WordPress itself, therefore they must be licensed under GPL.

But, it’s not uncommon to find many commercial themes and plugins not licensed under GPL. Whether they have the right to do so or not depends on the lawyers they can hire versus the lawyers you can hire. Not ideal, of course, but that’s the way our legal system works.

But, if the commercial themes and plugins are explicitly licensed under GPL, you can do whatever you want to the source codes, regardless of what notice the developers / sellers put on their website.