[SeasonOfDocs] TheGoodDocsProject: Finding a legal entity to assign license ownership to

[Cameron Shorter]

Thanks Eric for the info,

It is a pity WriteTheDocs isn't a non-profit, but I understand the 
challenges with setting up a not-for-profit - the OSGeo Foundation went 
through a lot of heartache going through the process.

While it would be great if were legally under the umbrella of 
WriteTheDocs, I suspect that being under the umbrella of a 
not-for-profit entity will be important for potential contributors from 
big companies.

I'm open to suggestions on who we should reach out to here.

Cheers, Cameron

On 17/7/19 3:32 am, Eric Holscher wrote:
> WTD info is documented here: 
> http://www.writethedocs.org/about-us/#legal-entity -- so, if you're 
> looking for a non-profit organization, we're not one at the moment. It 
> might be in the cards eventually, but it likely doesn't make sense for 
> us currently.
>
> We don't do any copyright assignment, so each person owns their own 
> contributions on our site.
>
> Cheers,
> Eric
>
> On Sat, Jul 13, 2019 at 6:54 PM Cameron Shorter 
> <cameron.shorter at gmail.com <mailto:cameron.shorter at gmail.com>> wrote:
>
>     Folks,
>     We should consider which legal entity will own the material we create.
>     People or a legal entity will own artifacts we create and others
>     can use the artifact under the terms of the license.
>
>     As I understand it, our options are:
>     * Every contributor owns their personal contribution. This makes
>     it very difficult to relicense a collective work in future, which
>     has pros and cons.
>     * More common is to assign ownership to a trustworthy non-profit
>     foundation, (such as the Apache Foundation, Open Source
>     Foundation, or Open Source Geospatial Foundation).
>
>     I'm in favour of selecting a suitable foundation to assign our
>     copyright to and would like to hear suggestions. I suspect the
>     legal structure behind WriteTheDocs would be good.
>
>     Eric, Jennifer, do you know the legal status of WriteTheDocs? Or
>     are you able to put us in touch with someone who knows?
>
>     -- 
>     Cameron Shorter
>     Technology Demystifier
>     Open Technologies and Geospatial Consultant
>
>     M +61 (0) 419 142 254
>
>
>
>
>
> -- 
> Co-founder Write the Docs
> http://www.writethedocs.org

-- 
Cameron Shorter
Technology Demystifier
Open Technologies and Geospatial Consultant

M +61 (0) 419 142 254

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