The Fredoscale License (often abbreviated FSL) is a permissive open-source software license. It is designed to be even shorter and more human-readable than the MIT or BSD 2-Clause licenses, while retaining the same core freedoms:
Its main goal is to maximize usability for developers and integrators, with minimal legal friction.
"Fredoscale" implies scaling freedom — from small scripts to enterprise systems.
A hypothetical FPL-1.0 (Fredoscale Public License) might include a header like this in the source code: Fredoscale License
/* FREDOSCALE PUBLIC LICENSE v1.0
*
* This software is free to use, modify, and distribute for:
* - Individuals
* - Non-profits
* - For-profit companies with Annual Gross Revenue < $1,000,000 USD
*
* If your company's AGR exceeds $1,000,000 USD, you must:
* 1. Purchase a commercial license from the licensor.
* 2. Display a "Powered by [Software]" attribution publicly.
*
* SaaS providers charging per-seat must license commercially regardless of revenue.
*/
You may NOT:
Critics, including the OSI and many free software purists, vehemently oppose the Fredoscale License. They argue it is not open source because it discriminates against fields of endeavor (a key OSI criterion).
The Definition Problem: Clause 6 of the OSI definition states: "The license must not restrict anyone from making use of the program in a specific field of endeavor." By punishing a company for being large, the Fredoscale License violates this. The Fredoscale License (often abbreviated FSL ) is
Enforcement Nightmare: How does a solo developer audit the revenue of a private startup in a foreign jurisdiction? The cost of compliance and enforcement would bankrupt the licensor long before the license fees arrive.
The Fork Risk: As soon as a company hits the scale threshold, they have the source code and the right (under the hobbyist term they originally used) to fork the last free version. The large company simply maintains its own fork, pays nothing, and never upgrades.
❌ No standalone purchase – If you only want FredoScale, you must buy the whole collection (which may be overkill).
❌ Manual license management – You must download a .lic file and place it manually; some users find this cumbersome compared to auto-login systems.
❌ Machine-locked – Changing hardware too often may require polite email requests to the developer (who is responsive but not instant).
❌ Not available on Extension Warehouse – You install via Fredo6’s own website or SketchUcation, which adds a step.
❌ No volume/network licensing – Not suitable for a school lab or large studio with 50+ seats (unless you buy individual licenses).
❌ No refund policy – Like most niche plugins, all sales are final. Its main goal is to maximize usability for
You cannot buy FredoScale alone. It’s included in either:
IN NO EVENT SHALL THE LICENSOR (FREDO6) BE LIABLE FOR ANY INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, PROCUREMENT OF SUBSTITUTE GOODS OR SERVICES; LOSS OF USE, DATA, OR PROFITS; OR BUSINESS INTERRUPTION) HOWEVER CAUSED AND ON ANY THEORY OF LIABILITY, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, STRICT LIABILITY, OR TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE OR OTHERWISE) ARISING IN ANY WAY OUT OF THE USE OF THIS SOFTWARE, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.