Adobe has several patents covering various areas of the PDF spec, but they "are licensed on a royalty-free, nonexclusive basis for the term of each patent and f

Adobe has several patents covering various areas of the PDF spec, but they "are licensed on a royalty-free, nonexclusive basis for the term of each patent and for the sole purpose of developing software that produces, consumes, and interprets PDF files that are compliant with the Specification:" http://partners.adobe.com/public/developer/support/topic_legal_notices.html http://partners.adobe.com/public/developer/support/topic_leg... The Adobe PDF specification is also freely available at: http://www.adobe.com/devnet/acrobat/pdfs/pdf_reference_1-7.pdf http://www.adobe.com/devnet/acrobat/pdfs/pdf_reference_1-7.p... Not sure where the $1500 is coming from, but it's certainly not a requirement for any PDF generator.