Since we announced last week that future versions of Redis will be released under dual source-available licenses, we decided to outline a few changes in how we will work with managed service providers going forward. Redis considers companies offering Redis OSS embedded in a solution or Redis-complementary services as managed service providers (“MSPs”).
This licensing change does not impact developers who continue to build on our source-available Community Edition, and most importantly, we are staying committed to that developer community and enterprise customer base by investing in a strong partner ecosystem. Redis will continue to support MSP’s with exclusive access to forthcoming Redis technologies, features, and releases that will be protected under the dual license. We will always help our partners leverage their experience with Redis to build successful businesses.
What is changing for the MSP ecosystem as a result of this new dual source-available license?
Organizations, including MSP’s, providing competitive offerings to Redis will no longer be permitted to use new versions and associated updates (starting with version 7.4) of Redis source code of Redis free of charge under either of the dual licenses.
We have also updated requirements on the use of “Redis” in product names. You can no longer use “Redis” or “for Redis” in your product name, but you can use the name “Redis” in your product descriptions or specify that your product is Redis-compatible or based on legacy Redis OSS. Additional information around usage of the Redis name and logo can be found in our trademark policy. We made this change to reduce confusion in the marketplace on what is or is not a Redis Ltd. product.
What is not changing with this new dual source-available license?
The license change is not retroactive, so all source code and releases prior to Redis 7.4 can be used indefinitely under the original license, as long as you abide by the terms and conditions of the BSD-3 license. Additionally, there is no change for integration partners who built client libraries or other integrations with Redis under an executed agreement.
What action can you take going forward?
If you are a MSP currently providing a Redis-based commercial offering to your customer, you will need to enter into a partnership with Redis to continue building, operating, and delivering solutions. You will be able to leverage Redis Community Edition and Enterprise as an offering depending on the strategic agreement you sign with Redis. To become a Redis partner or learn more about our partner benefits, please visit our Partner Program site.
If you are an existing Community- or Enterprise-level partner, you will continue to benefit from incentives, technical training, certification, and sales training. Existing or prospective partners with any questions regarding the licensing change can email redis_licensing@redis.com.
Why is it important to become a partner with Redis if you are not one already?
Speed. With our acquisition of Speedb, we’re going back to our roots as the world’s fastest real-time data platform, taking advantage of innovations and advancements in SSD storage and transfer rates, which are two orders of magnitude faster than when Redis originally launched. By pairing Redis’ blistering speed with Speedb’s world fastest storage engine, we’ll be able to deliver lightning-fast speed with greater price performance without compromising application performance.
Read more about the future of Redis, our licensing announcement and our strategic partnership with Microsoft Azure.
Please contact us at redis_licensing@redis.com if you have questions about your MSP offering, or sign up today to enjoy the benefits of becoming a Redis partner.
