[OSM-legal-talk] Using OSM data, to generate game worlds. How does the license apply to projects like this?

darkdanube darkdanube94 at gmail.com
Thu Feb 11 19:04:52 UTC 2021


> If you want to make sure to minimize what you give back to the OSM
community for using their data then the advice Kathleen gave...

That is not what I mean, and that makes me look very selfish. I would like
to contribute back to the OSM, what is reasonable. I will need to improve
the OSM in my area to be able to generate better game maps, and that is
what I would suggest to the players as well. I don't understand how could I
contribute to OSM by making game maps and 3D models freely available.

I wanted to know, that if I generate game worlds from OSM data, then what
part of it should I make freely available. If I am forced to open source
the game, and make all of its assets and algorithms freely available, then
I am not able to develop the game, because I could not cover the
development/server maintenance costs.

I did not want to find loopholes in the ODbL. The legal text was very
confusing for me, so I made many questions, to understand it better.



Christoph Hormann <chris_hormann at gmx.de> ezt írta (időpont: 2021. febr.
11., Cs, 19:06):

> On Thursday 11 February 2021, Kathleen Lu via legal-talk wrote:
> > Hi Lucas,
> > I disagree with Christoph re the LIDAR survey. Under the Collective
> > Database Guideline
> > (https://wiki.osmfoundation.org/wiki/Licence/Community_Guidelines/Col
> >lective_Database_Guideline_Guideline), if you use solely a non-OSM
> > source for building heights (versus improving OSM building heights
> > data with LIDAR data), you do not need to share back your height data
> > source. Same with weather data. Please note that opinions on this
> > listserv are just that, opinions. You do need to look at the
> > Guidelines for yourself, and if your situation is particularly
> > complex, consult an attorney.
>
> And please also note that the OSMF guidelines are just that as well -
> opinions.  What ultimately counts here is the text of the ODbL and the
> intentions of the OSM community when adopting this license and when
> agreeing to the contributor terms.  The OSMF is free to formulate
> guidelines stating their interpretation of the ODbL but under the
> contributor terms they have no authority to license the OSM data under
> terms other than those of the ODbL.
>
> If you generate a new database (one of 3d models of buildings) from OSM
> building footprint data and LIDAR point cloud data that is quite
> evidently not a collective database but a derivative database.  Even if
> you try to weasel around this by declaring the footprint data and the
> height data separate databases the height attributes determined from
> the LIDAR data would evidently be a derivative of both the LIDAR data
> and the OSM building footprint data.  A collective database would
> require the OSM sourced components and the data from other sources to
> be independent from each other.
>
> Some have in the past floated the hypothesis that a derivative of a
> substantial amount of OSM data can be something other than a derivative
> database, a collective database or a produced work and as such not be
> subject to the ODbL at all.  That idea (in German i would characterize
> it as "Die Weltraumhypothese unter den ODbL-Interpretationen") is
> however not on a very solid basis.
>
> If you want to make sure to minimize what you give back to the OSM
> community for using their data then the advice Kathleen gave - to
> consult an attorney capable to give you binding legal advice - is a
> good idea - even if most likely such an attorney would give you
> substantially the same advice in the end.  If you just want to be on
> the safe side assuming in cases of doubt that you have a derivative
> database will always work.  The loss in potential profits you have from
> sharing data that you legally might not absolutely be required to share
> will often be smaller than what a qualified attorney will charge you
> for their advice. :-)
>
> --
> Christoph Hormann
> https://www.imagico.de/
>
> _______________________________________________
> legal-talk mailing list
> legal-talk at openstreetmap.org
> https://lists.openstreetmap.org/listinfo/legal-talk
>
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