iOS app built in 2014 - Font license for Helvetica Neue?

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Created Jul ’20

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We inherited an old app that was built in 2014. It has Helvetica Neue embedded in the app. Back then, Helvetica Neue was the iOS system font. Were fonts embedded in the apps back then, or simply called like a website does?

We're dealing with a font licensing provider that is saying we now owe licensing fees from 2014 to current date (2020) for usage of the Helvetica family (~$24,350).

It doesn't seem right to me since it was the system font, but maybe it shouldn't have been embedded in the app. I don't know how apps were built back then.
Anyone know how fonts were specified back in 2014 and if their claim for back-payment is legit?

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Answer 1

doughill OP

Dec ’20

Hello,

Generally, fonts that were already installed by the OS were not embedded in iOS apps. You would typically use UIFont APIs to use the fonts included with the OS. UIFont.systemFont(ofSize:) would have given you Helvetica Neue when it was the system font. You could also use something like UIFont.init(name: "Helvetica Neue", size: 14).

Font embedding means that you have the font binary locally and embedded it your app with a build step. This means that you had to acquire the font from somewhere and download it locally. Where you got the font would be important as that would set the terms of the license agreement. If it was downloaded from Apple then I would go to them and ask about their license agreement. If the font was acquired through a font provider, you would need to discuss it with them. I see that fonts often have license agreements embedded in them, and that might be a good place to start looking.

Unfortunately, this appears to be a license agreement issue and you'll probably need to discuss this with someone who knows copyright/IP law. For example, Apple might indemnify developers who use their fonts within their iOS apps. Someone who knows law would be able to explain that better.

But as to your question, it was not standard practice to embed Helvetica Neue on iOS apps when that font was already installed in the system.

Good luck!

Doug Hill
https://github.com/djfitz/SFFontFeatures

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