[gdal-dev] change in ECW license agreement

[Brent Fraser]

Interesting problem.

The "old" GNU license says "This Agreement may only be
modified in writing signed by authorized representatives of
ERM.", but are we bound by those new license changes if we
use only the "old" source?

I say No, but I'm not a lawyer.  If the answer is Yes, then
I think the open source community needs to protect itself by
ensuring licenses for donated source code are granted in
perpetuity.

And both the old and new licenses are vague about the rights
of end-users who are using open-source apps to create ecw
files for sale.  Because I profit from the sale of data in
ecw format (but not from the sale of programs), do I need a
commercial ecw library license?  Maybe.

Perhaps we need a Google summer(s?)-of-code project to
produce a high performance FOSS JPEG 2000 library...

Brent Fraser
GeoAnalytic Inc.
Calgary, Alberta

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Matt Wilkie" <matt.wilkie at gov.yk.ca>
To: <gdal-dev at lists.osgeo.org>
Sent: Tuesday, December 11, 2007 10:16 AM
Subject: [gdal-dev] change in ECW license agreement


> Hello Folks,
>
> In recent discussion with a sales representative ER
Mapper, now owned by
> Leica Geosystems Geospatial Imaging, it came to light that
there is a
> new End User License Agreement in effect for the ECW/JP2
SDK, as of this
> week. (I'm trying to determine what license we need to buy
in order to
> use gdal_translate to create ecw larger than 500mb).
>
> The new EULA mentions open source projects specifically in
a couple of
> provisions.  I'm not going to go so far as to interpret
them, because
> I'll probably get it wrong! From my limited understanding
it does look
> like some things might need to be changed in how GDAL
packages and
> distributes the ECW driver, and that an organisation which
uses open
> source ecw-using tools to produce products it sells might
be considered
> commercial use(?).
>
> In any case, there are people here who the changes will
impact and would
> want to be aware of it. If the attached document does not
make it
> through, the EULA can be found at
> http://www.ermapper.com/Downloads.aspx?v=315 (after free
registration,
> the EULA will be shown before download begins).
>
> Best regards,
>
> -- 
> matt wilkie
> --------------------------------------------
> Geographic Information,
> Information Management and Technology,
> Yukon Department of Environment
> 10 Burns Road * Whitehorse, Yukon * Y1A 4Y9
> 867-667-8133 Tel * 867-393-7003 Fax
> http://environmentyukon.gov.yk.ca/geomatics/
> --------------------------------------------
>
>


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