[OSM-talk] Data copied from Google Maps

[Pieren]

On Tue, Nov 6, 2012 at 10:14 AM,  <vegard at engen.priv.no> wrote:

> So anyone who considers adding stuff that is not 100% OK to copy is
> destroying the project from within, not helping it.
>
> Period.

A public domain street sign does not become automagically a
copyrighted "derivative work" just because you see it through a
copyrighted photo. And this is true worldwide, not only in some
countries. But some people are continuing to keep the doubts because
they have a preference for surveys on the ground (something we have to
promote anyway but with fair arguments). Claiming copyright ownership
on public domain material has a name, it's called "copyfraud" ([1])
and is rarely sued in court in comparison to copyright infringements.

Period.
[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copyfraud