[OSGeo-Discuss] Software Copyright ownership

[Chris Puttick]

The other issue with assigning code copyrights to a US-based organisation is a simple one. The US has the strongest software patent machine and the most supportive courts (if you pick your state carefully ;) ).

As FOSSGIS applications bite ever harder into the profits of the dominant player(s), the chance of the game being changed to a legal one rather than a sales and marketing one is pretty high; a fight OSGeo couldn't afford to be in.

Chris

----- "Landon Blake" <lblake at ksninc.com> wrote:

> One example of the restrictions Luis is talking about is the
> prohibition
> against distributing certain cryptographic software outside of the
> US:
> 
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Export_of_cryptography
> 
> Don't know that OSGeo would bump into that, but it is one example of
> a
> US specific restriction on organizations involved in software
> development.
> 
> Landon
> Office Phone Number: (209) 946-0268
> Cell Phone Number: (209) 992-0658
>  
>  
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: discuss-bounces at lists.osgeo.org
> [mailto:discuss-bounces at lists.osgeo.org] On Behalf Of Luis W. Sevilla
> Sent: Monday, December 14, 2009 10:40 AM
> To: OSGeo Discussions
> Subject: Re: [OSGeo-Discuss] Software Copyright ownership
> 
> Hi,
>     one thing must be taken in account, IMHO. If I'm not wrong OSGeo
> is 
> an USA foundation (is registered in the States, and must follow his 
> laws, of course. As USA maintains a commercial embargo to Cuba [1], it
> 
> seems there are a lot of things in technology fields restricted to 
> American companies (and also foundations).
> 
>     If OSGeo will not became a more global (not so USA laws
> conditioned)
> 
> institution, it doesn't seem so good the idea of giving all and every
> 
> copyrights to the foundation.
> 
>     My two cents
>        Luis
> 
> [1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_embargo_against_Cuba
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