Jelurida Takes Copycat Blockchain Apollo to Court in Landmark Crypto Case

Jelurida, the company behind the Nxt and Ardor blockchains, has filed a writ of summons against Apollo for software license violations. Apollo stands accused of cloning the majority of the Nxt blockchain while failing to acknowledge the corresponding copyleft requirements, in violation of the Jelurida open source license agreement. The case could have wide-reaching ramifications for the cryptocurrency industry, where the practice of cloning blockchain code is rampant.

Jelurida Will Have Its Day in Court

On August 25, lawyers for software development company Jelurida will appear in an Amsterdam court to make their case against Apollo. According to the writ of summons, Apollo has repeatedly failed to acknowledge the licensing terms attached to the Nxt blockchain, whose open source software it copied without proper attribution. “Jelurida currently owns all rights – including intellectual property rights, such as copyrights – associated with or contained in the Nxt Software,” explains the writ.

Jelurida has been embroiled in a lengthy battle with Apollo to obtain the credit and attribution it is due under the terms of the Jelurida Public License (JPL). This is essentially an open source license that comes with certain terms attached, including crediting the creators of the code in question. In other words, Jelurida’s problem does not lie with Apollo copying Nxt’s code, but rather the way in which it has done so, without honoring the JPL.

The writ of summons concludes: “If Apollo no longer wishes to use the Nxt Software as part of the Apollo Coin or the Apollo Software, Apollo will need to start a new blockchain (based on software developed by Apollo itself or by third parties), or start a crypto coin based on a different existing blockchain (such as Bitcoin’s or Ethereum’s).”

A Case That’s Two Years in the Making

Jelurida’s beef with Apollo can be traced back to 2018, when the latter was issued with no less than four cease and desist letters for failing to adhere to the license terms. After much prodding, Apollo complied with the order, but by mid-2019, the JPL license in its software had been replaced by a generic one. Despite sending further legal notices, Apollo failed to comply this time, prompting Jelurida to pursue the matter through the courts.

Jelurida is taking great pains to stress that it isn’t seeking to stifle blockchain development or building upon the ideas of others. Rather, it appears determined to send a message that use of open source software shouldn’t come at the expense of acknowledging its creators. Companies such as Jelurida make their business from developing blockchain infrastructure, and are thus keen to be credited for their work, not only for the recognition this brings, but the potential leads it generates.

Should the Dutch courts find in favor of Jelurida, it will send a message that open source doesn’t mean free to use with no strings attached. The developers of other crypto projects will be eyeing the case with interest to see whether a precedent is set for future open source attribution claims.

Jelurida Fights For Its Right to Be Credited

The impending Apollo legal case isn’t the first instance of Jelurida fighting to obtain the credit it’s due. The software company is determined to receive acknowledgment for creating the first pure Proof-of-Stake blockchain in Nxt. This has led to a war of words with Algorand, which has claimed the title for itself, despite launching years after Nxt. Nxt lead developer Lior Yaffe has made it his mission to set the record straight while criticizing the “disrespect” exhibited by those who would claim credit for another’s work.