I made video streaming app with ISC license because it's the default in NPM.
Now I'm seeing people streaming porn with my app.
Shall I switch to the JSON license so that they stop doing that?
Unless the existing license has a clause that you may change the license at any time and that they agree to any changes in the license, then you can't stop them from using your previous version of the app under the existing license even if you change licenses. Even if you change the license, as long as the source code is available, it's pretty difficult AND expensive to initiate a lawsuit.
Looking up what the JSON license is, I don't think it is a particularly good license in general let alone would have the desired effect. For those who are streaming porn using your app, from their perspective they are "doing good." That specific clause is ambiguous given the context. Saying "don't do evil" sounds good on paper but probably won't hold any legal weight in a court of law and is therefore unenforceable. Courts rely on rule of law and precedent, in this case contract law, to make their decisions. For a comparative example and to show where evil is legally happening in the U.S.: Civil Asset Forfeiture in the U.S. is generally used for the direct taking of someone's property without any due process for the personal gain by members of police forces and other law enforcement (i.e. they take the person's money or whatever they want home with them at a random traffic stop), which is reprehensible behavior at best but is fundamentally evil. However, that behavior is allowed by law so courts are seemingly powerless to do anything until the law itself is changed. With Civil Asset Forfeiture we can see that evil is committed, is extremely short of "civil," the courts don't do anything, and the evil actions are allowed to continue unabated. Good vs. evil holds little to no value in a court's eyes. What is codified into law is what matters.
Changing the license probably won't have the effect you want. And you'll probably end up playing whack-a-mole. Here are several things you might consider doing instead that may be more effective:
If you control the associated services that the app uses, then you can choose to block or shut down that access.
If you are providing technical support for the app, you can choose to not provide support for anyone who doesn't align with your values, morals, ethics, or standards of behavior.
Add content reporting features to the app and origin IP tracking/reporting. Maybe refuse to start the app or start streaming content if the provider fails to meet certain criteria.
Make a content ranking system. Highlight good content streams. Bury or even disappear the bad ones. Combine this with the poor/unavailable technical support option above for maximum effect.
Stop working on the app altogether. Kind of an extreme solution but eventually everyone will stop using the app because it hasn't been updated in a long time.
I'm not a lawyer and none of this is to be construed as legal advice.
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I made video streaming app with ISC license because it's the default in NPM.
Now I'm seeing people streaming porn with my app.
Shall I switch to the JSON license so that they stop doing that?
Unless the existing license has a clause that you may change the license at any time and that they agree to any changes in the license, then you can't stop them from using your previous version of the app under the existing license even if you change licenses. Even if you change the license, as long as the source code is available, it's pretty difficult AND expensive to initiate a lawsuit.
Looking up what the JSON license is, I don't think it is a particularly good license in general let alone would have the desired effect. For those who are streaming porn using your app, from their perspective they are "doing good." That specific clause is ambiguous given the context. Saying "don't do evil" sounds good on paper but probably won't hold any legal weight in a court of law and is therefore unenforceable. Courts rely on rule of law and precedent, in this case contract law, to make their decisions. For a comparative example and to show where evil is legally happening in the U.S.: Civil Asset Forfeiture in the U.S. is generally used for the direct taking of someone's property without any due process for the personal gain by members of police forces and other law enforcement (i.e. they take the person's money or whatever they want home with them at a random traffic stop), which is reprehensible behavior at best but is fundamentally evil. However, that behavior is allowed by law so courts are seemingly powerless to do anything until the law itself is changed. With Civil Asset Forfeiture we can see that evil is committed, is extremely short of "civil," the courts don't do anything, and the evil actions are allowed to continue unabated. Good vs. evil holds little to no value in a court's eyes. What is codified into law is what matters.
Changing the license probably won't have the effect you want. And you'll probably end up playing whack-a-mole. Here are several things you might consider doing instead that may be more effective:
I'm not a lawyer and none of this is to be construed as legal advice.