[FFmpeg-user] Regarding ./configure and nonfree

[Oliver Fromme]

Top Secret wrote:
 > When I use "--enable-cuda --enable-cuvid --enable-nvdec
 > --enable-nonfree" for configure string I aim to use some of
 > the nvidia cuda decoders h264 for example to decode on gpu.
 > I want to use this commercially is there a issue with this
 > in terms of licensing?

Disclaimer:  I'm not a lawyer or patent expert.  I recommend that
you talk to one about this.

The answer is (as far as I know):  It depends.  Commercial use
of H.264 is covered by a patent pool that is managed by the Via
Licensing Alliance (formerly MPEG LA).  Quote from Wikipedia:

"The commercial use of patented H.264 technologies requires the
payment of royalties to Via and other patent owners.  MPEG LA has
allowed the free use of H.264 technologies for streaming Internet
video that is free to end users, and Cisco paid royalties to MPEG
LA on behalf of the users of binaries for its open source H.264
encoder openH264."

Source:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advanced_Video_Coding

Best regards
 -- Oliver