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Posted to legal-discuss@apache.org by ru...@apache.org on 2009/04/23 12:57:33 UTC
svn commit: r767889 - in /infrastructure/site/trunk:
docs/legal/resolved.html docs/licenses/GPL-compatibility.html
xdocs/legal/resolved.xml xdocs/licenses/GPL-compatibility.xml
Author: rubys
Date: Thu Apr 23 10:57:32 2009
New Revision: 767889
URL: http://svn.apache.org/viewvc?rev=767889&view=rev
Log:
Incorporate Larry's explanation
Modified:
infrastructure/site/trunk/docs/legal/resolved.html
infrastructure/site/trunk/docs/licenses/GPL-compatibility.html
infrastructure/site/trunk/xdocs/legal/resolved.xml
infrastructure/site/trunk/xdocs/licenses/GPL-compatibility.xml
Modified: infrastructure/site/trunk/docs/legal/resolved.html
URL: http://svn.apache.org/viewvc/infrastructure/site/trunk/docs/legal/resolved.html?rev=767889&r1=767888&r2=767889&view=diff
==============================================================================
--- infrastructure/site/trunk/docs/legal/resolved.html [utf-8] (original)
+++ infrastructure/site/trunk/docs/legal/resolved.html [utf-8] Thu Apr 23 10:57:32 2009
@@ -143,6 +143,9 @@
Discrimination Against Persons or Groups"). Therefore, the NPL is listed as an
excluded license. </dd>
+ <dt>GNU GPL</dt>
+ <dd>Discussion of <a href="http://www.apache.org/licenses/GPL-compatibility.html">Apache License v2.0 and GPL Compatibility</a> merits a separate page.</dd>
+
<dt>GNU LGPL</dt>
<dd>The LGPL is ineligible primarily due to
the restrictions it places on larger works, violating the third
Modified: infrastructure/site/trunk/docs/licenses/GPL-compatibility.html
URL: http://svn.apache.org/viewvc/infrastructure/site/trunk/docs/licenses/GPL-compatibility.html?rev=767889&r1=767888&r2=767889&view=diff
==============================================================================
--- infrastructure/site/trunk/docs/licenses/GPL-compatibility.html [utf-8] (original)
+++ infrastructure/site/trunk/docs/licenses/GPL-compatibility.html [utf-8] Thu Apr 23 10:57:32 2009
@@ -77,6 +77,22 @@
to be a <a href="http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/free-sw.html">free software</a>
license, <a href="http://www.fsf.org/licensing/licenses/compat.html">compatible</a> with version 3 of the <a href="http://www.fsf.org/licensing/licenses/gpl.html">GPL</a>.
</p>
+<p>Apache 2 software can therefore be included in GPLv3 projects,
+because the GPLv3
+license accepts our software into GPLv3 works. However, GPLv3 software
+cannot be included in Apache projects. The licenses are incompatible in one
+direction only, and it is a result of ASF's licensing philosophy and the
+GPLv3 authors' interpretation of copyright law.</p>
+<p>This licensing incompatibility applies *only* when some Apache project
+software becomes a derivative work of some GPLv3 software, because then the
+Apache software would have to be distributed under GPLv3. This would be
+incompatible with ASF's requirement that all Apache software must be
+distributed under the Apache License 2.0.</p>
+<p>We avoid GPLv3 software because merely linking to it is considered by the
+GPLv3 authors to create a derivative work. We want to honor their license.
+Unless GPLv3 licensors relax this interpretation of their own license
+regarding linking, our licensing philosophies are fundamentally
+incompatible. This is an identical issue for both GPLv2 and GPLv3.</p>
<p>Despite our best efforts, the FSF has never considered the Apache
License to be compatible with GPL version 2, citing the patent
termination and indemnification provisions as restrictions not present
Modified: infrastructure/site/trunk/xdocs/legal/resolved.xml
URL: http://svn.apache.org/viewvc/infrastructure/site/trunk/xdocs/legal/resolved.xml?rev=767889&r1=767888&r2=767889&view=diff
==============================================================================
--- infrastructure/site/trunk/xdocs/legal/resolved.xml [utf-8] (original)
+++ infrastructure/site/trunk/xdocs/legal/resolved.xml [utf-8] Thu Apr 23 10:57:32 2009
@@ -94,6 +94,9 @@
Discrimination Against Persons or Groups"). Therefore, the NPL is listed as an
excluded license. </dd>
+ <dt>GNU GPL</dt>
+ <dd>Discussion of <a href="http://www.apache.org/licenses/GPL-compatibility.html">Apache License v2.0 and GPL Compatibility</a> merits a separate page.</dd>
+
<dt>GNU LGPL</dt>
<dd>The LGPL is ineligible primarily due to
the restrictions it places on larger works, violating the third
Modified: infrastructure/site/trunk/xdocs/licenses/GPL-compatibility.xml
URL: http://svn.apache.org/viewvc/infrastructure/site/trunk/xdocs/licenses/GPL-compatibility.xml?rev=767889&r1=767888&r2=767889&view=diff
==============================================================================
--- infrastructure/site/trunk/xdocs/licenses/GPL-compatibility.xml [utf-8] (original)
+++ infrastructure/site/trunk/xdocs/licenses/GPL-compatibility.xml [utf-8] Thu Apr 23 10:57:32 2009
@@ -32,6 +32,25 @@
to be a <a href="http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/free-sw.html">free software</a>
license, <a href="http://www.fsf.org/licensing/licenses/compat.html">compatible</a> with version 3 of the <a href="http://www.fsf.org/licensing/licenses/gpl.html">GPL</a>.
</p>
+<p>Apache 2 software can therefore be included in GPLv3 projects,
+because the GPLv3
+license accepts our software into GPLv3 works. However, GPLv3 software
+cannot be included in Apache projects. The licenses are incompatible in one
+direction only, and it is a result of ASF's licensing philosophy and the
+GPLv3 authors' interpretation of copyright law.</p>
+
+<p>This licensing incompatibility applies *only* when some Apache project
+software becomes a derivative work of some GPLv3 software, because then the
+Apache software would have to be distributed under GPLv3. This would be
+incompatible with ASF's requirement that all Apache software must be
+distributed under the Apache License 2.0.</p>
+
+<p>We avoid GPLv3 software because merely linking to it is considered by the
+GPLv3 authors to create a derivative work. We want to honor their license.
+Unless GPLv3 licensors relax this interpretation of their own license
+regarding linking, our licensing philosophies are fundamentally
+incompatible. This is an identical issue for both GPLv2 and GPLv3.</p>
+
<p>Despite our best efforts, the FSF has never considered the Apache
License to be compatible with GPL version 2, citing the patent
termination and indemnification provisions as restrictions not present
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