Open Wallpaper Engine — Terms of Use

Version 1.0 · Effective date: 2026-09-28

1. Acceptance

These Terms of Use ("Terms") are an agreement between you and Deepratna Awale, an individual ("we", "us"), who releases and maintains OWE. When the app first launches, it shows you these Terms and the Privacy Policy and asks you to confirm that you have read them. By continuing to use the app after that notice, you agree to these Terms. If you do not agree, do not use the app. Nothing in this notice limits your rights under the GPL (section 2).

The app records locally on your Mac which version of these documents you were shown, and when. Nothing is sent to us.

2. The licence, and the GPL comes first

2.1 Source code

OWE's source code is licensed under the GNU General Public License, version 3.0 (GPL-3.0). You may use, study, copy, modify and redistribute it under the terms of that licence. The full text is in the repository: https://github.com/deepratna-awale/open-wallpaper-engine-mac.

2.2 The GPL prevails

Nothing in these Terms restricts, conditions or adds to your rights under the GPL-3.0 in respect of the source code or any binary built from it. If any part of these Terms conflicts with the GPL-3.0, the GPL-3.0 governs the software and that part of these Terms does not apply to the extent of the conflict. In particular, these Terms do not require you to accept anything as a condition of exercising the GPL freedoms, and they do not restrict who may run the program or for what purpose.

2.3 What these Terms add

These Terms cover matters the GPL does not: your use of third-party services through the app, respect for other people's content, the app's update mechanism, and the disclaimers and liability limits that the GPL already permits a licensor to state. Where you obtain OWE from someone other than us (for example a fork or a repackaged build), these Terms apply only between you and us, and only in respect of the software as we release it.

2.4 Third-party components

OWE includes open-source components under their own licences (for example, the Sparkle update framework under the MIT licence). Their notices are included with the app and in the repository. The original Open Wallpaper Engine is by Haren Chen and MrWindDog, and the original logo is by Klaus Zhu.

3. Eligibility

You must be old enough to enter into a binding agreement where you live, or use the app with a parent's or guardian's consent. The app is not directed at children under 13 (or 16 where a higher age applies). Steam Workshop features additionally require a Steam account, which is subject to Valve's own eligibility rules.

4. Your responsibilities

When using OWE, you agree that:

• You own Wallpaper Engine. To download Steam Workshop wallpapers or Wallpaper Engine's assets, you must use your own Steam account that has purchased Wallpaper Engine. OWE only downloads content that your account is entitled to.
• You respect Valve's terms. Your use of Steam, the Steam Workshop, the Steam Web API and SteamCMD is subject to the Steam Subscriber Agreement (https://store.steampowered.com/subscriber_agreement/), the Steam Web API Terms of Use (https://steamcommunity.com/dev/apiterms) and Valve's other applicable terms. You are responsible for complying with them.
• You respect creators' rights. Workshop wallpapers and Wallpaper Engine's assets belong to their creators and owners and are licensed to you through Steam. Do not redistribute, sell or use them beyond what those licences allow.
• No piracy or circumvention. You will not use OWE to obtain, share or use Wallpaper Engine, its assets or Workshop content that you are not entitled to, or to circumvent any licensing or access control.
• Lawful use. You will use the app in accordance with the law where you are, and not to infringe anyone's rights.
• Your credentials are yours to protect. Keep your Steam credentials and Steam Web API key confidential. OWE stores your API key and Steam account name in the macOS Keychain and never stores your password (see the Privacy Policy).

5. Third-party services and content

5.1 Valve, Steam and SteamCMD

OWE is a client that talks to Valve's public Steam services and uses SteamCMD, Valve's official tool, which the app downloads from Valve's servers at runtime. Valve provides those services and that tool under its own terms; we do not control them, and they may change or stop working at any time. We are not responsible for their availability, behaviour or content, or for any action Valve takes on your account.

5.2 Workshop and imported content

Wallpapers you download or import are created by third parties. OWE does not host, redistribute, review or endorse them, and claims no rights in them. Web wallpapers and scene scripts run code written by their creators, and web wallpapers may load content from the internet. Treat wallpapers like any software you install: only use content from creators you trust. We are not responsible for what third-party content does or shows.

5.3 GitHub

The app fetches update information and downloads from GitHub, which provides its services under its own terms.

5.4 Links

Links in the app open in your browser. Third-party sites are governed by their own terms and policies.

6. Not affiliated; trademarks

OWE is an independent, community project. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, sponsored by or otherwise connected to Wallpaper Engine, its developer (Kristjan Skutta / Wallpaper Engine Team), Valve Corporation or Steam.

"Wallpaper Engine" is a name belonging to its developer. "Steam", "Steam Workshop" and related marks are trademarks of Valve Corporation. "GitHub" is a trademark of GitHub, Inc. These names are used only to describe compatibility and the services the app connects to. The names "Open Wallpaper Engine" and "OWE" are used to identify this project; nothing in these Terms grants you rights in the project's name or logo beyond what the GPL-3.0 and applicable law allow.

7. Updates

If you allow it, OWE checks for new versions and installs them automatically. Updates are signed and verified before installation. You can turn off automatic update checks in Settings and update manually from GitHub Releases instead. Updates may change features and may require you to accept revised Terms or Privacy Policy. We are under no obligation to provide updates, support or maintenance.

8. No warranty

OWE is provided "as is" and "as available", without warranty of any kind. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we disclaim all warranties, express or implied, including any implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, title and non-infringement, and any warranty that the app will be error-free, uninterrupted, secure or compatible with your hardware, macOS version, Wallpaper Engine or any wallpaper. You use the app at your own risk. This section states the disclaimer that sections 15 of the GPL-3.0 contemplates.

Some jurisdictions do not allow certain warranty exclusions, so some of the above may not apply to you. Nothing in these Terms affects rights you have as a consumer that cannot be excluded by contract.

9. Limitation of liability

To the fullest extent permitted by law, we (and the project's contributors) will not be liable to you for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential or punitive damages, or for any loss of data, loss of profits, or loss of use, arising out of or in connection with the app or these Terms, however caused and under any theory of liability, even if we were advised of the possibility of such damages. To the extent liability cannot be excluded, our total liability to you for all claims will not exceed the amount you paid us for the app, which is nothing.

Nothing in these Terms excludes or limits liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, for fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, or for anything else that cannot be excluded by law. This section states the limitation that section 16 of the GPL-3.0 contemplates.

10. Termination

You may stop using OWE at any time by deleting it (the Privacy Policy lists the folders to remove). We may end these Terms as they apply to your use of the app if you materially breach them. Termination of these Terms does not terminate your GPL-3.0 licence to the source code, which ends only as the GPL itself provides. Sections 2, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 12 and 13 survive termination.

11. Governing law and disputes

These Terms are governed by the laws of the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador and the federal laws of Canada applicable there, without regard to its conflict-of-law rules. Any dispute that cannot be resolved informally will be brought in the courts of the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador, sitting in St. John's, except that if you are a consumer, you may also rely on the mandatory consumer-protection laws and courts of the country where you live.

Before starting any formal proceedings, please contact us (section 14) so we can try to resolve the matter informally.

12. Changes to these Terms

We may change these Terms from time to time. The version number and effective date at the top will change, and the app will ask you to accept the new version if the changes are material. If you do not accept, you should stop using the app (your GPL rights to the source code are unaffected). Earlier versions are available in the repository's history.

13. General

• Severability. If any part of these Terms is found invalid or unenforceable, the rest remains in effect and the invalid part is replaced by a valid one that comes closest to its purpose.
• Entire agreement. These Terms, the Privacy Policy and the GPL-3.0 are the whole agreement between you and us about OWE. The GPL-3.0 prevails as set out in section 2.2.
• No waiver. If we do not enforce a provision, that is not a waiver of it.
• Assignment. You may not transfer these Terms; we may transfer them to a successor who takes over maintaining the project.
• Language. These Terms are written in English. Any translation is for convenience; the English text governs.

14. Contact

https://github.com/deepratna-awale/open-wallpaper-engine-mac/issues