software licensing
Using JetBrains Student license to develop a commercial product that is in developpement
<p>I was just wondering if a student user would be  able to use JetBrains Student license to develop a commercial product that is still not released and where the company is still not created?</p>
<p>Text of the license:<br />
<a href="https://www.jetbrains.com/legal/docs/toolbox/license_educational.html" rel="nofollow noreferrer">https://www.jetbrains.com/legal/docs/toolbox/license_educational.html</a></p>

<h2 id="apparently-not-nyd8">Apparently not</h2>
<p><s>The full text of the license is not included on the page you link to, or on any linked page that I checked. But</s> the FAQ says:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>free educational licenses can be used strictly for non-commercial educational purposes (including academic research).</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Exactly how this company defines &quot;non-commercial educational purposes&quot; is not stated. If work is done on a student project, and after a non-student license is purchased that project is commercialized, would the license have been violated, and if so, would the company be likely to sue? The fist question cannot be answered without the full text of the license, and the second would require reading the minds of the company officials. But it seems reasonably clear that this is not what the company has in mind.</p>
<p>Another user has pointed out a link to the actual license terms which I failed to note. Section 3.1 of the license says, in relevant part:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>... JetBrains grants You a non-exclusive and non-transferable right to use each Product covered by the Toolbox Subscription for <strong>non-commercial, educational purposes only</strong> (including conducting academic research or providing educational services)  ...</p>
</blockquote>
<p>This would seem to confirm what the FAQ quoted above says. It is hard to see how any development intended as an eventual commercial product would be covered under such a license term. It would appear that a regular non-student license would be needed for such use.</p>
