License of fonts included with Windows? [closed]

Question

I'm wondering what is the license of the fonts included with Windows. Does anybody know where I could find the EULA for them? In general, can I freely use these fonts in my open source software?

In general, I know I cannot distribute the font file itself, but how about simply displaying some text with this font? For example, Arial is used in many websites, I guess these websites don't pay some extra license fee to Microsoft?

Answer 1

The Arial wikipedia article describes the licensing terms of Microsoft fonts. And, it also specifies free alternatives available that are metrically equivalent to Arial. Liberation Sans is a good choice IMO. Look at relevant wiki articles to know all the free alternatives available.

Most of the Windows fonts are licensed to Ascender corporation. They now provide license for software and hardware developers to use them. See Type Foundry: Microsoft for more information, and the fonts available.

In addition to that, if you go to right-click -> properties, there's a tab called license. It provides the information about licensing terms as well.

When it comes to use of fonts like Arial in websites, I think it's allowed because the website itself doesn't embed the font, but merely specifies the font name. It's the browser that does the mapping. If you are talking about a stand-alone software, you need to have a closer look.

Answer 2

You are free to use the fonts supplied with Windows, free to write software that uses them, but you cannot distribute them.