Changeset - 5963e0d131ea
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Bradley Kuhn (bkuhn) - 10 years ago 2014-03-20 22:26:42
bkuhn@ebb.org
Comment out this text, will need to be adapted later.
1 file changed with 13 insertions and 13 deletions:
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gpl-lgpl.tex
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@@ -3157,109 +3157,109 @@ three reasons.  First, the GPL is a strong copyleft license, requiring
 
modified versions to be distributed under the GPL\@.  Second, the GPL states
 
that no further restrictions may be placed on the rights of recipients.
 
Third, all other software freedom respecting licenses in common use contain certain
 
requirements, many of which are not conditions made by the GPL\@.  Thus, when
 
GPL'd code is modified by combination with code covered by another formal
 
license that specifies other requirements, and that modified code is then
 
distributed to others, the freedom of recipients may be burdened by
 
additional requirements in violation of the GPL.  It can be seen that
 
additional permissions in other licenses do not raise any problems of license
 
compatibility.
 

	
 
GPLv3  took a new approach to the issue of combining GPL'd code with
 
code governed by the terms of other software freedom licenses.  Traditional
 
GPLv2 license compatibility theory (which was not explicitly stated in GPLv2
 
itself, but treated as a license interpretation matter by the FSF) held that GPLv2 allowed such
 
combinations only if the non-GPL licensing terms permitted distribution under
 
the GPL and imposed no restrictions on the code that were not also imposed by
 
the GPL\@.  In practice, the FSF historically supplemented that policy with a structure of
 
exceptions for certain kinds of combinations.
 

	
 
GPLv3~\S7  implements a more explicit policy on license
 
compatibility.  It formalizes the circumstances under which a licensee may
 
release a covered work that includes an added part carrying non-GPL terms. 
 
GPLv3~\S7 distinguish between terms that provide additional permissions, and terms that
 
place additional requirements on the code, relative to the permissions and
 
requirements established by applying the GPL to the code.
 

	
 
As discussed in the previous section of this tutorial, GPLv3~\S7 first and foremost explicitly allows added parts covered by terms with
 
additional permissions to be combined with GPL'd code. This codifies the
 
existing practice of regarding such licensing terms as compatible with the
 
GPL\@. A downstream user of a combined GPL'd work who modifies such an added
 
part may remove the additional permissions, in which case the broader
 
permissions no longer apply to the modified version, and only the terms of
 
the GPL apply to it.
 

	
 
In its treatment of terms that impose additional requirements, GPLv3\S7
 
extends the range of licensing terms with which the GPL is compatible.  An
 
added part carrying additional requirements may be combined with GPL'd code,
 
but only if those requirements belong to an set enumerated in GPLv3\S7. There
 
are, of course,  limits on the acceptable additional requirements, which to
 
ensures that enhanced license compatibility does not
 
defeat the broader software-freedom-defending terms of the GPL\@. Unlike terms that grant
 
additional permissions, terms that impose additional requirements cannot be
 
removed by a downstream user of the combined GPL'd work, because only in the
 
pathological case\footnote{Theoretically, a user could collect copyright
 
  assignment from all known contributors and then do this, but this would
 
  indeed be the pathological case.}  would a user have the right to do so.
 

	
 
Under subsections 7a and 7b, the requirements may include preservation of
 
copyright notices, information about the origins of the code or alterations
 
of the code, and different warranty disclaimers. Under subsection 7c, the
 
requirements may include limitations on the use of names of contributors and
 
on the use of trademarks for publicity purposes. In general, we permit these
 
requirements in added terms because many free software licenses include them
 
and we consider them to be unobjectionable. Because we support trademark fair
 
use, the limitations on the use of trademarks may seek to enforce only what
 
is required by trademark law, and may not prohibit what would constitute fair
 
use.
 

	
 
% FIXME: 7d-f
 

	
 
% FIXME-LATER: It would be good to have detailed info on each of 7a-f.
 
%              Here's some commented-out text that might be useful for 7a-b
 

	
 
%% Under subsections 7a and 7b, the requirements may include preservation of
 
%% copyright notices, information about the origins of the code or alterations
 
%% of the code, and different warranty disclaimers. Under subsection 7c, the
 
%% requirements may include limitations on the use of names of contributors and
 
%% on the use of trademarks for publicity purposes. In general, we permit these
 
%% requirements in added terms because many free software licenses include them
 
%% and we consider them to be unobjectionable. Because we support trademark fair
 
%% use, the limitations on the use of trademarks may seek to enforce only what
 
%% is required by trademark law, and may not prohibit what would constitute fair
 
%% use.
 

	
 
% FIXME:  removing additional restrictions
 

	
 
% FIXME:  probably mostly still right, needs some updates, though.
 

	
 
Section 7 requires a downstream user of a covered work to preserve the
 
non-GPL terms covering the added parts just as they must preserve the GPL, as
 
long as any substantial portion of those parts is present in the user's
 
version.
 

	
 
% FIXME: minor rewrites needed
 

	
 
Section 7 points out that GPLv3 itself makes no assertion that an additional
 
requirement is enforceable by the copyright holder.  However, section 7 makes
 
clear that enforcement of such requirements is expected to be by the
 
termination procedure given in section 8 of GPLv3.
 

	
 
% FIXME: better context, etc.
 

	
 
Some have questioned whether section 7 is needed, and some have suggested
 
that it creates complexity that did not previously exist.  We point out to
 
those readers that there is already GPLv2-licensed code that carries
 
additional terms.  One of the objectives of section 7 is to rationalize
 
existing practices of program authors and modifiers by setting clear
 
guidelines regarding the removal and addition of such terms.  With its
 
carefully limited list of allowed additional requirements, section 7
 
accomplishes additional objectives, permitting the expansion of the base of
 
code available for GPL developers, while also encouraging useful
 
experimentation with requirements we do not include in the GPL itself.
 

	
 
\section{GPLv3~\S8: A Lighter Termination}
 

	
 
% FIXME:  probably mostly still right, needs some updates, though.
 

	
 
GPLv2 provided for automatic termination of the rights of a person who
 
copied, modified, sublicensed, or distributed a work in violation of the
 
license.  Automatic termination can be too harsh for those who have committed
 
an inadvertent violation, particularly in cases involving distribution of
 
large collections of software having numerous copyright holders.  A violator
 
who resumes compliance with GPLv2 would need to obtain forgiveness from all
 
copyright holders, but even to contact them all might be impossible.
 

	
 
% FIXME: needs to be updated to describe more complex termination
 

	
 
Section 8 of GPLv3 replaces automatic termination with a non-automatic
 
termination process.  Any copyright holder for the licensed work may opt to
 
terminate the rights of a violator of the license, provided that the
 
copyright holder has first given notice of the violation within 60 days of
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