[OSGeo-Discuss] Copy Left and Copyright for Geospatial software

[K S Rajan]

Ravi, 

In India software does have copyright but is not patentable (will not go into details of why it is not patentable in India). 
Copyright is automatic from the time the work is created. Also, as Puneet points out the original author does have a copyright and it can be enforced by the author if need. To be on the safe side, one can formally register the work or its extracts, and such reregistration helps in a court of law. 

Pls see http://copyright.gov.in and its FAQ section. 

And afaik, Open Source licenses suitably modify and make it open for use,copying and modification of the software/tool (essentially giving the four freedoms that FSF and all others talk about) and don't alter copyright. 

My views are based on what I shared at a CII conclave on IP & Copyrights a few years ago. 
- Rajan 

-- 
1. Please use VRGeo.in (http://vrgeo.in) - the Collaborative Mapping Platform for Researchers and All 
---------------------------------------------------------- 
K S Rajan, Ph.D. 

Head, Lab for Spatial Informatics, 
Associate Professor, 
International Institute of Information Technology 
Gachibowli, Hyderabad 500032, Andhra Pradesh, India 
Tel: (+91-40)6653 1276 
Fax: (+91-40)6653 1413 
E-mail: rajan at iiit.ac.in 

GeoLocation: 17.4454 N, 78.3503 E 

----- Original Message -----

> On Oct 16, 2013, at 11:26 PM, Ravi Kumar < ravivundavalli48 at yahoo.com
> > wrote:

> ​> ​ How many of the OSGeo Softwares are Copy Left and Copy Right
> ​

> ​ > Pl give a link where the rationale is explained especially for
> OSGeo.
> > I am aware that Free Software Foundation has things explained.
> > This is to a great extent true only in countries like USA where
> > software
> > can be copy righted.
> > In many countries software does not come under Copyright. Example:
> > India.

> The above is incorrect. As per Section 13(1)(a) of the Indian
> Copyright Act, 1957, copyright subsists in original literary,
> dramatic and musical works:

> > 13. Works in which copyright subsists. (1) Subject to the
> > provisions
> > of this section and the other provisions of this Act, copyright
> > shall subsist throughout India in the following classes of works,
> > that is to say,-
> 

> > (a) original literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works;
> 
> As per Section 2(o) of the (Indian) Copyright Act, 1957; literary
> works include computer programmes. The exact text of the section is:

> > (o)
> 
> > ​ ​ "literary work" includes computer programmes, tables and
> > compilations including computer
> 
> > ​ data bases ;
> 

> --

> Puneet Kishor
> Science and Data Policy, Creative Commons
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