Apple Changes "iBooks Author" EULA, Frees Your Competing Platform Rights

Remember all that controversy about Apple's iBooks Author EULA? Well, self-publishers, it's time to exhale: Apple's changed the language to said agreement, removing all previously-included restrictions to peddling your work on competing platforms. The EULA section was originally worded thus:

B. Distribution of your Work. As a condition of this License and provided you are in compliance with its terms, your Work may be distributed as follows:
(i) if your Work is provided for free (at no charge), you may distribute the Work by any available means;
 (ii) if your Work is provided for a fee (including as part of any subscription-based product or service), you may only distribute the Work through Apple and such distribution is subject to the following limitations and conditions: (a) you will be required to enter into a separate written agreement with Apple (or an Apple affiliate or subsidiary) before any commercial distribution of your Work may take place; and (b) Apple may determine for any reason and in its sole discretion not to select your Work for distribution.

Now, however, the limitations have been clarified and simplified (emphasis added):

B. Distribution of Works Generated Using the iBooks Author Software. As a condition of this License and provided you are in compliance with its terms, works generated using iBooks Author may be distributed as follows:
(i) if the work is provided for free (at no charge), you may distribute it by any means; (ii) if the work is provided for a fee (including as part of any subscription-based product or service) and includes files in the .ibooks format generated using iBooks Author, the work may only be distributed through Apple, and such distribution will be subject to a separate written agreement with Apple (or an Apple affiliate or subsidiary); provided, however, that this restriction will not apply to the content of the work when distributed in a form that does not include files in the .ibooks format generated using iBooks Author. You retain all your rights in the content of your works, and you may distribute such content by any means when it does not include files in the .ibooks format generated by iBooks Author.

It's worth reminding readers that a good many folks online actually interpreted Apple's original wording exactly as it's reflected in this update. And 9to5Mac reminds us that

[t]he new agreement explained that Apple never planned to confine the distribution of non-.iBooks content, and the EULA clarified users are allowed to distribute .iBooks formatted documents elsewhere—they just cannot charge elsewhere.

So there you go. While all that initial hoopla may well have been much ado about nothing, anything that prompts the creation of more understandable license agreements is a very good thing. Nerd rage wins again! [Image: apple.com. Interestingly, Apple's titled this official iBooks Author image "hero." Hmm.]