[OSM-legal-talk] Share-data licence

[Nick Black]

So are the MySQL schemas licensed under the GPL, CC or PD?  They are a
critical part of the Openstreetmap software, but could be licensed in
different ways with different consequences. At the moment the only
indication of GPL is from the wiki:

"OpenStreetMap software is licensed under the GNU GPL"

It seems that this does not count, so far as the GNU how-to:

http://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-howto.html

Could anyone confirm this?

Nick


On 3/13/07, Richard Fairhurst <richard at systemed.net> wrote:
> SteveC wrote:
>
> > Christopher Schmidt wrote:
> >> The prevailing legal opinion -- at least in the US -- is "Yes". Map
> >> databases are sets of facts. Facts are not copyrightable.
> >
> > Unlike in the EU:
> >
> > http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Database_right
>
> Mmm, IWTWFTICTI [1].
>
> Case law in the European Courts of Justice (BHB vs William Hill, and
> Fixtures Marketing) has substantially narrowed the applicability of
> database right. I've put some relevant links on the wiki 'Case law'
> page, and you can Google for loads more:
> http://www.kemplittle.com/SL-DBRight_AfterWH_0105.htm is a good
> summary (by which I mean that human beings can _almost_ understand it).
>
> Effectively database right doesn't give protection to "underlying
> materials" (the facts which we record through surveying work), just to
> the databaseness of it all, and even then only in some circumstances.
> It's not even 100% clear that OSM would qualify as a database
> (really), and if it did, whether the database right owners would be
> OSMF or individual contributors (or both).
>
> It's kind of moot anyway because CC expressly say that their licences
> are copyright licences, not database right licences:
>
> "Users of European databases should also be aware of the fact that the
> database may be protected by a sui generis (ie. copyright-like)
> database right that is not actually a copyright right and thus, not
> licensed under the standard Creative Commons licenses (except the
> Belgium & Netherlands Creative Commons licenses)."
>
> cheers
> Richard
>
> [1] I wouldn't trust Wikipedia further than I could throw it ;)
>
>
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-- 
Nick Black
--------------------------------
http://www.blacksworld.net