[OSM-talk-be] Mapping GRs?

[Ben Laenen]

Peter Bienstman wrote:
> Hi,
>
> A project that is of interest to me is mapping out the GR footpaths, as
> described in:
>
> http://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/WikiProject_Belgium/Walking_Routes
>
> However, I was wondering if we are legally allowed to do so. Our French
> friends don't seem to think so:
>
> http://forum.openstreetmap.org/viewtopic.php?id=3665
>
> Or is the situation in Belgium different?

The situation is different in the way that the organization in charge of GR 
routes in France has a history of threatening to sue (or indeed, sue) someone 
who distributed maps of a French GR route. The situation not being entirely 
clear they decided to play safe and not map the routes. The entire discussion 
can be read in the talk-fr archives, I think from January. Note that 
they do happily map cycle routes which would pose exactly the same problems.

As to possible rights they could have: I don't see trademarks as a problem: 
nothing wrong with calling a cat a cat, a Ford a Ford, or a GR a GR.

But could one have a copyright over a route, if it's publicly signed? If one 
can, then we have to drop all our cycle and walking routes from OSM, even bus 
routes would then be copyrighted. My opinion (and that of most people in OSM) 
is that from the moment you mark the route in real life, it can't be 
copyrighted. Because we then happen to make a map of roads where they've 
painted these awkward figure on trees and poles... Just make sure you don't 
copy maps but map by following the signs or marks.


That said, I do plan to present OSM one day to the Grote Routepaden 
organization. But I'm waiting for OSM to mature a bit first (in terms of the 
data quality and quantity, map rendering and other tools) so it's possible 
to let them better see what advantages they could have by working actively 
together with OSM, and that it's really not something which would only bring 
them disadvantages like reduced sales of their guides -- which I don't think 
would happen, as guides are so much more than maps. Since they're a non-
profit, I do have high hopes they'll see the potential of OSM.

Greetings
Ben