Age verification exemptions for open source operating systems feel like Phyrric victories

elseif has not written about this yet · OSnews describes it this way

On the Windows side of the age verification question, Microsoft is obviously following trends among lawmakers the world over. To address this, Windows is introducing a new platform capability: the Windows Age API. This API brings age awareness beyond the operating system by making it available across the entire Windows ecosystem so that apps and services can deliver age-appropriate experiences using the same trusted foundation. By making age awareness available as a platform capability, Windows helps developers build safeguards into experiences from the start rather than placing the burden on children and families to manage protections app by app. ↫ Rob Mauceri at the Windows Blogs Meanwhile, on the Linux side of things, there’s been some cheering as at least California passed amendments to its age verification law to exempt open source operating systems. These amendments redefine the term “operating system provider” to exclude any person or entity that distributes an OS or application “under license terms that permit a recipient to copy, redistribute, and modify the software.” Any software distributed under the GPL, MIT, BSD, and Apache licenses satisfies that test, which removes