diff --git a/osbuild/__main__.py b/osbuild/__main__.py
index f9cba16f..4b5f3119 100755
--- a/osbuild/__main__.py
+++ b/osbuild/__main__.py
@@ -59,13 +59,8 @@ def main():
     manifest = json.load(f)
     f.close()
 
-    if "pipeline" in manifest:
-        pipeline = manifest["pipeline"]
-        sources_options = manifest.get("sources", {})
-    else:
-        # backwards compatibility
-        pipeline = manifest
-        sources_options = {}
+    pipeline = manifest.get("pipeline", {})
+    sources_options = manifest.get("sources", {})
 
     if args.sources:
         with open(args.sources) as f: