malicious "subscription" websites and GPL

[Sascha Wüstemann]

Clemens Ladisch wrote:
> Michael Keppler wrote:
>> We recently found that the German website opendownload.de hosts
>> thousands of popular downloads (including TV-Browser) which you can only
>> download by agreeing to a 2 years subscription for 96 Euros per year.
>>
>> We are quite sure that we (as developers) can not do much about the
>> "subscriptions" that people may get into (unwanted).
[..]
> It looks as if you have no legal argument to go against them.  (In fact,
> the GPL protects them from any further restriction that you might try to
> impose.)

Ack, I share the same impression _but_ it is a web rip-off site. To get
a download of an elsewhere freely available download you have to sign a
trade which binds you for 2 years paying fees. I suspect their contracts
being immoral at least or even against public policy which is near
illegality - which may be my feeling only and not the state of law. I'd
never sign their trade, I am not that silly :-)

Sascha