internet software business terms-of-service open-source-software
Is my application commercial according to this definition?
<p>I'm planing to use <a href="http://api.imgur.com" rel="nofollow noreferrer">the Imgur API</a> in my own application. According to their document(emphasis mine):</p>

<blockquote>
  <p><strong>Commercial Usage</strong></p>
  
  <p>Your application is commercial if you're making any money with it
  (which includes in-app advertising), <em>if you plan on making any money
  with it</em>, or if it belongs to a commercial organization. To use
  Imgur's API commercially, ......</p>
  
  <p><strong>Free Usage</strong></p>
  
  <p>The Imgur API is free for non-commercial usage. Your application is
  probably free if you don't plan on making any money with it, <em>or if
  it's open source.</em></p>
</blockquote>

<p>The problem is that I do expect some money from it: there is a "donate" button on every page. However, I'm also willing to make my application open source.</p>

<p>So my question is: Should I pay for commercially using the Imgur API?</p>

<p>The license terms are quite clear, in one place. They define "commercial" as the intent to make <em>any</em> money from the app. Having a donate button does not negate the intent to make some money. They murk things up by saying "Your application is <strong>probably</strong> free if you don't plan on making any money with it, or if it's open source". But that is not a promise of a license term, it is a suggestion. If the app were non-commercial, then use is free; if it is open source, you may negotiate with them.</p>
