The Affero General Public License, often abbreviated as Affero GPL and AGPL (and sometimes informally called the Affero License), refers to two distinct, though historically related, free software licenses:
| Version | Published by | Based on |
|---|---|---|
| Affero General Public License, version 1 | Published by Affero, Inc. in March 2002 | GNU General Public License, version 2 (GPLv2). |
| GNU Affero General Public License, version 3 | Published by the Free Software Foundation in November 2007 | GNU General Public License, version 3 (GPLv3). |
Both versions of the AGPL were designed to close a perceived application service provider "loophole" (the "ASP loophole") in the ordinary GPL, where by using but not distributing the software, the copyleft provisions are not triggered. Each version differs from the version of the GNU GPL on which it is based in having an additional provision addressing use of software over a computer network. The additional provision requires that the complete source code be made available to any network user of the AGPL-licensed work, typically a Web application.
The Free Software Foundation has recommended that the GNU AGPLv3 be considered for any software that will commonly be run over a network. The Open Source Initiative approved the GNU AGPLv3 as an open source license in March 2008 after Funambol submitted it for consideration.
Read more about Affero General Public License: History, Compatibility With The GPL, Examples of Web Applications Under AGPL
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