S2A Policy

[sathyaw]

Hi There,

I am trying to figure answers to bunch of questions that I am listing below; appreciate your feedback.

1. Is S2A a Digium product or Skype product ? Would like to figure which terms and conditions applies to use of S2A ?

2. As per the http://docs.digium.com/SFA/skype_for_as ... manual.pdf (page 8 diagram) and subsequent pages of usage of asterisk, we could use S2A to provide a G/W between SIP clients to Skype and PSTN to Skype. There are many companies offering Skype to PSTN g/w "Services". Is this Violating any Skype regulations ?

3. If one sell Skype to SIP as a service using S2A, would that be subjected to any violations ?

Cheers
SW

[rmontgomery]

Thanks for your questions.

Is S2A a Digium product or Skype product ? Would like to figure which terms and conditions applies to use of S2A ?

Skype for Asterisk is a Digium product, jointly developed with Skype. Digium's End User License Agreement applies to the software, and Skype's Terms of Service apply to the use of Skype service. The Digium EULA is displayed when you register the software. You can also view the unformatted text of the EULA. (For easier reading, save as a file and open with a text editor.)

As per the http://docs.digium.com/SFA/skype_for_as ... manual.pdf (page 8 diagram) and subsequent pages of usage of asterisk, we could use S2A to provide a G/W between SIP clients to Skype and PSTN to Skype. There are many companies offering Skype to PSTN g/w "Services". Is this Violating any Skype regulations ?

Skype for Asterisk provides a de facto gateway between your Asterisk server and Skype's service. The very purpose is to bridge Skype users and Asterisk users/applications. However, the license to use Skype for Asterisk is for internal business purposes and not for resale, sub license, leasing, or providing hosted services to third-parties.

If one sell Skype to SIP as a service using S2A, would that be subjected to any violations ?

Yes, the Skype for Asterisk software is not licensed to provide hosted services to third parties. Digium cannot de-authorize software that was properly activated, but Skype may ban or otherwise deactivate your access if you are determined to violate their terms of service or the software license.

[Clint.Davis]

for "provide hosted services to third parties".

Can you expand on this?

Does this mean hosting an asterisk application (say dictation) or hosted PBX services, SFA can only be used by the internal company who purchased the licence not the end users who want to use those services?

Clint

[roderickm]

First, I am not a lawyer, and this discussion has no bearing on the license whatsoever. Please consult an attorney to advise you if you think you're in a grey area. As I wrote earlier, Digium cannot deactivate a properly-registered license key, so enforcement of these terms would likely take the form of Skype limiting your access to their service.

Skype generates revenue in part by providing gateway services on a subscription or per-minute basis (Skype In/Out/Connect). Obviously Skype would look dimly on a Skype for Asterisk installation that generally subverts that service. The most obvious use of Skype for Asterisk is simply to connect a business to the Skype network, allowing Skype users to call or be called through the business' Asterisk system. But some extended uses of Asterisk -- say, a website click-to-call service or building a Skype-enabled call center -- begin to look a lot like "hosted services" by some interpretations.

From what I understand, Skype's interest in having that language in the EULA was to forbid organizations using SFA from competing with their own paid gateway services. If you have a use case that you think might fall on the wrong side of these terms, please seek legal advice.