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Kindle Fire Silk browser ported to other Android devices: Theft?

By | January 4, 2012, 11:04am PST

Summary: The porting of the Kindle Fire Silk browser to non-Amazon hardware raises the question — is this theft?

Amazon made a big deal about its Silk browser included on the Kindle Fire, claiming it would speed up web browsing on the Fire. My experience with the browser backs up that claim when connected to the web via a slow connection, but otherwise it is much like other Android browser variants. The homebrew community didn’t like the fact that the Silk browser was restricted to the Kindle Fire, and have now ported it to other Android devices. That raises the question — isn’t that stealing the app?

The beauty of Android is how open it is, and how most companies involved let users do pretty much what they want with the software. I’m not sure that applies to the Silk browser, which is developed by Amazon strictly for the Kindle Fire. Porting it to non-Amazon hardware seems to fly in the face of doing what is right. It almost seems like outright theft of proprietary software.

The argument will be made that Amazon is not losing anything since Silk carries no extra cost to Fire owners, but that’s pretty weak. Everything has a cost to develop, and this is no different. Since the Silk browser uses Amazon servers to dish out web pages faster than normal, there is an actual cost to the company for every illicit copy in use.

Android may be open but that doesn’t mean folks can just take any app on the platform willy-nilly. It seems there is an ethical boundary that has been crossed with this Silk browser port. What do you think? Should any free app on Android devices be fair game to take and put on devices they aren’t intended to be run on? Leave a comment and let me know.

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Amazon Kindle Fire, Web Browser, Amazon Kindle, E-books & E-Readers, Web Browsers, Personal Technology, Internet, James Kendrick

James Kendrick has been using mobile devices since they weighed 30 pounds, and has been sharing his insights on mobile technology for almost that long.

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James Kendrick

James Kendrick has no affiliations or relationships that need to be disclosed.

Biography

James Kendrick

James Kendrick has been using mobile devices since they weighed 30 pounds, and has been sharing his insights on mobile technology for almost that long. Prior to joining ZDNet, James was the Founding Editor of jkOnTheRun, a CNET Top 100 Tech Blog that was acquired by GigaOM in 2008 and is now part of that prestigious tech network. James' writing has appeared in many print publications: Smartphone and Pocket PC Magazine, Information Week and Laptop Magazine to name a few. James' coverage of the mobile technology sector has regularly appeared in the New York Times, Salon.com and CNN/ Fortune online. Not just a writer, James has filmed numerous video reviews and how-tos that have garnered well over a million viewers. He has appeared on local news segments and been interviewed by the Associated Press on mobile technology topics. Additionally, James has been podcasting about mobile technology for years.

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RE: Kindle Fire Silk browser ported to other Android devices: Theft?
Aerowind 5th Jan
I don't know of the legality of it, but I can see Amazon clamping down...basically by making it so it only uses the cloud to process data if coming from an Amazon device. Otherwise it redirects you to the Fire page.
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RE: Kindle Fire Silk browser ported to other Android devices: Theft?
paul2011 4th Jan
If it is gone from Kindle Fire then yes.
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RE: Kindle Fire Silk browser ported to other Android devices: Theft?
x I'm tc 4th Jan
@paul2011
That's right. Strictly speaking, "stealing" software (or any other digital media) isn't actually stealing, because the original still exists. Some use the term "piracy" but of course, this isn't really accurate, either. What it is is copyright infringement.

And it is illegal.
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RE: Kindle Fire Silk browser ported to other Android devices: Theft?
JJJoseph 4th Jan
@jdakula: "What it is is copyright infringement."

I don't think so. If it's open source, so you're entitled to what you want with it - you can even take it apart and reassemble it into something else. Have you seen any statements from Amazon reserving rights? If no rights are reserved, or it's published as open source, then likely they're not restricting you in any way.
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RE: Kindle Fire Silk browser ported to other Android devices: Theft?
gavmiller 4th Jan
Hmmm, Amazon might make more from the extra search/usage data collected than the cost to service additional users.
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RE: Kindle Fire Silk browser ported to other Android devices: Theft?
heredavid 4th Jan
@gavmiller - I agree, also the "public awareness" free press kind of thing...developing an android app, as I understand has very little cost more-so once it is developed. All-in-all while I usually agree with James, I am somewhat disappoint in this view James. A neutral viewpoint asking what the readers would vote is more inline with James' normal articles...
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RE: Kindle Fire Silk browser ported to other Android devices: Theft?
errandum 4th Jan
@heredavid
The problem in this is not what it costs to develop, but what it costs to maintain. Silk uses a server farm to speed up the user experience, and that's not free.

On the other hand, Amazon could just use this as a great marketing tool. They have something most people want, and they can use it as a means to push amazon into your phone. I seriously hope Amazon doesn't go on a blocking spree for silk. That'd hurt them way more than simply releasing it themselves.
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RE: Kindle Fire Silk browser ported to other Android devices: Theft?
x I'm tc 4th Jan
@errandum
If they want to give it away, that's up to them. This is copyright infringement, plain and simple.
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RE: Kindle Fire Silk browser ported to other Android devices: Theft?
fredzachary 4th Jan
@heredavid - Asking readers to vote won't change the fact that this is copyright infringement and ethically wrong.
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RE: Kindle Fire Silk browser ported to other Android devices: Theft?
nategator Updated - 4th Jan
@jdakula this isn't a ripped mp3. Silk was built on WebKit, the same open source code powering Safari and Chrome. So you cannot assume any of it is copyright infringement without having an IP lawyer going through the code and the underlying open source licenses and seeing if Amazon can claim copyright on any of the code that was ported over. Plus, Silk probably violates or uses someone else's patents -- probably Opera since they were doing the same thing years ago -- so Amazon may not even have the IP moral ground (not that it matters)

There is a reason why Microsoft called open source software a "cancer". Once you start using it, the underlying licenses can wipe out all of your copyright claims. But companies still go for it because they can try for patent protection or tie it in with services that are not as easily copied.
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RE: Kindle Fire Silk browser ported to other Android devices: Theft?
leopards 4th Jan
I think I'll leave that up to Amazon to answer! If they fire off a lawsuit, then the answer is yes!
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Line crossed ...
johnfenjackson@... 4th Jan
... not by porting the app. but by using the AMAZON cloud.
I'd be OK with the port if it linked to a cloud service provided by the developer.
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If you can't take the heat of modding & hacking
kingcobra23 4th Jan
Then get out of the Android kitchen!

Android is an open platform, love it or leave it.
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I left it
LiquidLearner 4th Jan
@kingcobra23

And I love being gone.
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RE: Kindle Fire Silk browser ported to other Android devices: Theft?
jglopic 4th Jan
Personally, I suspect that Amazon is neither surprised nor angry about this. They had to expect it would happen at some point. Plus, if they get the browsing pattern and history, they may have been happily waiting for this to happen.
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Depends
Tim Patterson 4th Jan
Maybe I missed it but it depends on the license that applies to Silk.

Maybe if you would do your due diligence as a responsible media type and enlighten us as to the license we would be better prepared to respond.
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here
Tim Patterson Updated - 4th Jan
3. License and Restrictions

"Subject to your compliance with the terms of the Agreement, Amazon grants you a non-exclusive, non-transferable, non-sublicensable, limited license to install and use the Software on your computer or device in accordance with the Agreement and any applicable law or regulation in the relevant jurisdictions (including any laws regarding the export of data or software to and from the United State or other relevant countries). You may not make copies of or distribute the Software or electronically transfer the Software from one device to another or over a network. Except and only to the extent expressly permitted under applicable law, you may not, and may not encourage, assist, or authorize any other person to, modify, reverse engineer, decompile, or disassemble the Software, in whole or in part; create any derivative work from or of the Software; or bypass, modify, defeat or tamper with or circumvent any of the functions or protections of the Software. Unless Amazon has given you specific written permission to do so, you may not sublicense, assign, or otherwise transfer the Software or your rights to use the Software. All rights not expressly granted in the Agreement are reserved by Amazon and its affiliates."

"An open source software license applies to certain components of the Software and will govern in the event of a conflict with this Agreement. For more information about the open source software components, see the legal notices section of your device or Amazon Silk browser."
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RE: Kindle Fire Silk browser ported to other Android devices: Theft?
jeremychappell 4th Jan
@Tim Patterson - Nice comment, very well done!

And the answer seems clear: "piracy".
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RE: Kindle Fire Silk browser ported to other Android devices: Theft?
JJJoseph 4th Jan
@Tim Patterson:"An open source software license applies to certain components of the Software and will govern in the event of a conflict with this Agreement"

Well, there you have it. It's open source and you're free to do what you like with it. Open source prevents anyone from trying to restrict any part of the package. If some of it is open source, then _ALL_ of it is open source. Go for it!
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But
Tim Patterson Updated - 4th Jan
@jeremy

Curious however the part about "certain components" under an "open source" license. Which open source license and if integrated into the whole may indicate a violation on the part of Amazon?

I love how some companies use the work of others (open source) to provide most of the functionality of their product then attempt to lock it all up under a proprietary license. /sarcasm

Not saying that is what Amazon did here but I'd love to see these "open source" license terms.
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Also
Tim Patterson 4th Jan
From the notice heading the source code download page regarding the source for the Fire;

"In accordance with certain free and open source software licenses, Amazon is pleased to make available to you for download an archive file of machine readable source code ("Source Code")."

You walled garden serfs better hold off on your rants until we know what the deal is here.
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RE: Kindle Fire Silk browser ported to other Android devices: Theft?
jeremychappell 5th Jan
@Tim Patterson Well there are plenty of "open source" licenses apart from the GPL, notably the BSD (and similar) license. Here you can reuse the code in closed source projects. The term "open source" really means that the source code is distributed, this isn't the same as any other freedom (you can argue both sides of this coin, with BSD-style licenses you have the freedom to include the code in projects that you don't want to give the source code for, with GPL you are obligated to pass on the freedom you enjoy).

However, given that Silk makes use of EC2, without payment, I find it hard to believe that Amazon won't want to protect that.

Now sure, if I just port Silk to another device, **maybe** that isn't a problem. But what happens if I take the JavaScript engine and run that "stand alone", making my applications run on it. Haven't I just created a "free supercomputer" at Amazon's expense?

Maybe there is some mechanism that stops this in the implementation... But allowing anything to run Silk derived code sure looks like a "blank cheque". Let's not forget running EC2 costs Amazon real $'s here.

Let's also not forget that Silk is ultimately derived from WebKit (a BSD style license).
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RE: Kindle Fire Silk browser ported to other Android devices: Theft?
mwagner@... 4th Jan
Stealing is stealing.

One MIGHT be able to argue that the source-code for the app has to be open since it runs on an open-source platform covered under the GPL (thanks to its Linux underpinnings) but if, once ported to another platform, the app still uses Amazon-owned servers, it is stealing those computing resources.

Amazon needs to modify the app so it only uses Amazon resources if it is running on an Amazon-manufactured device.
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RE: Kindle Fire Silk browser ported to other Android devices: Theft?
eak2000 4th Jan
@mwagner@...

No, Amazon does not need to modify the app since they weren't the ones that ported it. Why should they be held responsible for the actions of someone else? That's akin to trying a car owner for murder because a thief stole their car and ran over a pedestrian.

The developer who ported the app, needs to modify it... IF the source code is open*. If the source code for Silk is not open, then this is just another case of copyright infringement by people who don't understand that not everything should be free (as in beer). Either way, saying Amazon needs to modify the app so that it is easier for others to copy is, bluntly, one of the most stupid things I have read on ZDNet in a long time. (And that's saying a lot.)

You do have a point that the ported app, as it now stands, is stealing Amazon's computing resources, however.

*And that is a slippery slope, because if you're going to argue that the source code for Silk should be open BECAUSE it runs on a GPL'd platform, then you also better be prepared to argue that Angry Birds source should be open because it runs on an GPL'd platform... and if that's the case, then why would anyone wanting to make money off of mobile app sales develop for Android?
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RE: Kindle Fire Silk browser ported to other Android devices: Theft?
jeremychappell 4th Jan
@mwagner@... That isn't how the GPL works. Linux doesn't restrict the license of the software it runs.
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RE: Kindle Fire Silk browser ported to other Android devices: Theft?
dcolbert@... 4th Jan
The Kindle Fire runs on Android, which is built on Linux, which is covered by the GNU and other Open License licenses, right?

Don't all of those licenses, including GNU, state that any software that is designed to run under a kernel that is covered by the GNU license - must also be released under the GNU license? I know this is something the FOSS community has struggled to address - The whole philosophical idea of "free as in free beer" always seemed to imply that to allow non-free software onto a platform that is covered by a free and open software license... well - this ALL makes my head hurt. So clearly, in order to allow Nvidia and others to release drivers for Ubuntu and other *nix platforms, there has been some modification of the original GNU licensing which really WAS as strict about "everything that runs on this system MUST be GNU licensed, and therefore, open and free". Wait... @mwagner is making the same basic argument above that I'm making here...
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RE: Kindle Fire Silk browser ported to other Android devices: Theft?
jeremychappell 4th Jan
@dcolbert@... No it doesn't say that. GPL software can run non-GPL software with no conflict. Non-GPL software can even link to GPL libraries without problems. This is a common misunderstanding of the GPL license. You cannot include GPL code in a non-GPL project (essentially copy&paste GPL source into non-GPL source).
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RE: Kindle Fire Silk browser ported to other Android devices: Theft?
willyampz 4th Jan
@dcolbert@...
I'm not 100% on this but my understanding is a little closer to the truth:
An application running on android/linux does not need to be open source. It is only using OS provided services and APIs, not directly using the source code. Also, drivers can remain as a binary module along side the kernel and don't need to be open source either. However, if you modify the GPL'd source code to the kernel or android or other libraries, or bring that source directly into your source, you must make your code open as well. That's why for honeycomb, google released the linux kernel mods, but not the honeycomb layer, since that is not strictly GPL. Apps like the Silk browser do not need to release the source code. It can be completely proprietary.
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RE: Kindle Fire Silk browser ported to other Android devices: Theft?
JavaJobber 4th Jan
Server-side optimization for mobile browsing is very cool. I completely agree with the other commenters who are wary of making unauthorized use of Amazon server resources. If Amazon won't offer Silk via the Android and/or Amazon App Stores, then rather than ripping them off at your peril, go try the server-optimized SkyFire for Android or Opera Mini instead.
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linux kernel
qunungnauraq 4th Jan
Is it stealing if it uses the Linux kernel?
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RE: Kindle Fire Silk browser ported to other Android devices: Theft?
nategator Updated - 4th Jan
From the Silk Browser terms and conditions:


"An open source software license applies to certain components of the Software and will govern in the event of a conflict with this Agreement. For more information about the open source software components, see the legal notices section of your device or Amazon Silk browser."

So, it depends on the legal notices and the underlying open source code.

My understanding is that Silk is based on WebKit, which is the open source software powering Chrome and Safari. It uses both GNU Lesser General and BSD style licenses.

Without having the specific legal notice in front of me or background in the WebKit licenses, my guess is that the porters were probably ok or could at least make an argument that they did not infringe on any copyrights with their port. However, if their port taps Amazon's servers without permission, that could potentially be considered "theft" or really a violation of the many unauthorized access of computer networks laws, which can create considerable civil and criminal penalties, both for the coders and, more troubling, the users that may not realize the full implications of using deceptive software to get unauthorized access to Amazon's computer services.

So, ironically enough, the things you are worried about -- development of code, etc -- are probably the least protected because they are all open source based. The problem is the access on Amazon's cloud service. But there may be some way around that too, depending on the fine print.
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RE: Kindle Fire Silk browser ported to other Android devices: Theft?
ComputerX 4th Jan
Though isn't this just Opera Turbo (which is free and freely available), but with Amazon? I don't see what the fuss is about. Quit stealing from Amazon and use Opera...
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RE: Kindle Fire Silk browser ported to other Android devices: Theft?
lgwhitlock@... 4th Jan
When Amazon posted the code for their variant of Android did it include Silk with that code? If yes then it is not copyright theft. If no then it likely is.

Whatever the case Amazon could just allow this as it would likely create good will with the homebrew community and bring free advertising which is usually a good thing.
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A few important, and seemingly missing, points...
Raife_1 4th Jan
1. What is Amazon's position? If Amazon does not consider it to be a violation of their, legally-recognized, "copyrights", then no "infringement" has occurred. And, this article would, therefore, be little more than aggrandized fear-mongering.

2. Does Amazon actually hold copyright to the software? If it is derived from "open-source" projects (and the included "open-source" licensing, "copyright" requirements), then Amazon may not have any claim to copyright protection with regards to "porting".

3. "Copyright infringement" is -not- "theft". Period. Only tangible items, services, or "Intellectual Property" can actually be stolen. There is too little information, confirmation, or even official allegations, presented here to even begin to seriously discuss this (as "copyright violation"), let alone... make third-hand allegations, of "theft".

Seriously.
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RE: Kindle Fire Silk browser ported to other Android devices: Theft?
dwhipple 5th Jan

Should any free open source app on Android devices be fair game to take and put on devices they aren???t intended to be run on?



There, I fixed that for you. And the answer is, Yes. By definiton it is open source and free to use and reuse.
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RE: Kindle Fire Silk browser ported to other Android devices: Theft?
polandro 5th Jan
Oh Dear, listen to all the keyboard warriors.

I take my hat off to you, James Kendrick, your red-top journalistic powers have not deserted you, after all.
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RE: Kindle Fire Silk browser ported to other Android devices: Theft?
hayneiii@... 5th Jan
As I understand it, Silk uses the Amazon Cloud in some instances. Since this is the case, unless that feature is disabled, I would say it is theft of services.
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RE: Kindle Fire Silk browser ported to other Android devices: Theft?
Aerowind 5th Jan
I don't know of the legality of it, but I can see Amazon clamping down...basically by making it so it only uses the cloud to process data if coming from an Amazon device. Otherwise it redirects you to the Fire page.

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