[edited to add] it seems to me from other posts seen here that (A) the firmware is floating around already and (B) at 500MB of RAM, underpowered CPU, and considering the other serious limitations of the device, I don't even know if it is likely to be worth somebody's time to put in the work to make a CFW. Personally it seems much more fun to use an off-the-shelf SBC to build a cool project than to try to shoehorn something into this awful little computer. But maybe that's just me.
-- Following is my original comment written before I knew much --
It seems to me like the bare minimum would be enough to take the heat off: Publish a quick and dirty flashing tool, and leave the binary of the firmware available. If people want to disassemble the firmware they have plausible deniability to the patent holders involved, and if nerds want to devote time to reverse engineer it and make a custom firmware image, they can figure it out themselves. After all, part of the fun of such a project is the challenge.
-- Following is my original comment written before I knew much --
It seems to me like the bare minimum would be enough to take the heat off: Publish a quick and dirty flashing tool, and leave the binary of the firmware available. If people want to disassemble the firmware they have plausible deniability to the patent holders involved, and if nerds want to devote time to reverse engineer it and make a custom firmware image, they can figure it out themselves. After all, part of the fun of such a project is the challenge.