I'm currently looking for a game development framework which I can use for a fan-project in my spare time and also for commercial projects in the company I'm working for.
I think that the Citrus Engine which is open source and based on Apache Flex/Adobe AIR/Starling/Away3D/Box2d/Nate might be a good choice.
But I'm really confused about the license model of Adobe AIR and its runtime distribution.
Do I have to pay a license fee or royalties for my games (which include the AIR runtime in order to be stand-alone-apps) when I publish them?
If so how much are these license fees/royalties?
Does this also concern free apps?
What is the name of the license which I would have to request from Adobe in order to publish my games?
Do I need several licenses when publishing an app on multiple AppStores (Apple/Google/Amzaon) or desktop distribution platforms (Steam/GOG)?
Are there further licensing obstacles which I have to keep in mind when using Flex/AIR for (commercial) game development?
By the way - the FAQ on the product page (http://www.adobe.com/products/air/faq.html) isn't really helping on this topic:
"How much does Adobe AIR cost?" -> "The Adobe AIR runtime and AIR SDK are free for most users."
This answer leaves me with the question: Am I belonging to the "most users" or not?
Therefore it isn't meaningful at all.
I'm also thinking about adding short video sequences as FLVs to the games.
If I understood correctly H.264 and MP3 are currently used as a standard for these video files but aren't free.
Is there a free alternative available for FLVs which can be used in combination with Adobe AIR?
Or did I get something wrong here and don't need to worry about getting sued when using these formats?
Thank you in advance for answering my numerous questions.