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Posted to legal-discuss@apache.org by Lawrence Rosen <lr...@rosenlaw.com> on 2009/04/22 19:03:44 UTC
RE: [jira] Created: (LEGAL-48) Legal category for GPLv3 license
> I've read that GPLv3 is definitely compatible with the Apache 2 license,
> yet our third party licensing policy page
> (http://www.apache.org/legal/3party.html) lumps GPLv2 and GPLv3 together
> as "GNU GPL". It seems like the licensing policy page is out of date, but
> maybe I'm missing something -- is there an explicit reason why GPLv3 is in
> Category X?
Apache 2 software can 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.
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.
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.
/Larry
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Re: [jira] Created: (LEGAL-48) Legal category for GPLv3 license
Posted by Sam Ruby <ru...@intertwingly.net>.
On Wed, Apr 22, 2009 at 10:13 PM, Henri Yandell <hy...@gmail.com> wrote:
> On Wed, Apr 22, 2009 at 5:19 PM, Roy T. Fielding <fi...@gbiv.com> wrote:
>> On Apr 22, 2009, at 10:03 AM, Lawrence Rosen wrote:
>>
>>>> I've read that GPLv3 is definitely compatible with the Apache 2 license,
>>>> yet our third party licensing policy page
>>>> (http://www.apache.org/legal/3party.html) lumps GPLv2 and GPLv3 together
>>>> as "GNU GPL". It seems like the licensing policy page is out of date,
>>>> but
>>>> maybe I'm missing something -- is there an explicit reason why GPLv3 is
>>>> in
>>>> Category X?
>>>
>>> Apache 2 software can 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.
>>>
>>> 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.
>>>
>>> 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.
>>
>> Excellent summary -- can we add this answer to the FAQ?
>
> +1.
I've added it to
<http://www.apache.org/licenses/GPL-compatibility.html>, and added a
link to that page from <http://www.apache.org/legal/resolved.html>. I
added one word (namely "therefore") to the first paragraph to make
this content flow with the existing text.
It may take up to an hour for the mirrors to catch up.
- Sam Ruby
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Re: [jira] Created: (LEGAL-48) Legal category for GPLv3 license
Posted by Henri Yandell <hy...@gmail.com>.
On Wed, Apr 22, 2009 at 5:19 PM, Roy T. Fielding <fi...@gbiv.com> wrote:
> On Apr 22, 2009, at 10:03 AM, Lawrence Rosen wrote:
>
>>> I've read that GPLv3 is definitely compatible with the Apache 2 license,
>>> yet our third party licensing policy page
>>> (http://www.apache.org/legal/3party.html) lumps GPLv2 and GPLv3 together
>>> as "GNU GPL". It seems like the licensing policy page is out of date,
>>> but
>>> maybe I'm missing something -- is there an explicit reason why GPLv3 is
>>> in
>>> Category X?
>>
>> Apache 2 software can 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.
>>
>> 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.
>>
>> 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.
>
> Excellent summary -- can we add this answer to the FAQ?
+1.
Hen
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Re: [jira] Created: (LEGAL-48) Legal category for GPLv3 license
Posted by "Roy T. Fielding" <fi...@gbiv.com>.
On Apr 22, 2009, at 10:03 AM, Lawrence Rosen wrote:
>> I've read that GPLv3 is definitely compatible with the Apache 2
>> license,
>> yet our third party licensing policy page
>> (http://www.apache.org/legal/3party.html) lumps GPLv2 and GPLv3
>> together
>> as "GNU GPL". It seems like the licensing policy page is out of
>> date, but
>> maybe I'm missing something -- is there an explicit reason why
>> GPLv3 is in
>> Category X?
>
> Apache 2 software can 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.
>
> 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.
>
> 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.
Excellent summary -- can we add this answer to the FAQ?
....Roy
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Re: [jira] Created: (LEGAL-48) Legal category for GPLv3 license
Posted by Niclas Hedhman <ni...@hedhman.org>.
On Thu, Apr 23, 2009 at 1:03 AM, Lawrence Rosen <lr...@rosenlaw.com> wrote:
> This is an identical issue for both GPLv2 and GPLv3.
Good summary; Additionally, it has been the FSF that has maintained
that the GPLv2 is incompatible with the Apache License ver 2.0 (but
not ver 1.x) in both directions, i.e. ALv2 works can not be included
into GPLv2 works. IIRC, it was some obscure patent submarining and
litigation scenario that could render the downstream user without the
rights FSF is trying to protect.
Cheers
--
Niclas Hedhman, Software Developer
http://www.qi4j.org - New Energy for Java
I live here; http://tinyurl.com/2qq9er
I work here; http://tinyurl.com/2ymelc
I relax here; http://tinyurl.com/2cgsug
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