Plan 9 license

[David Johnson]

On Mon, 28 Aug 2000, Brian Behlendorf wrote:

> I think I've mentioned it before, but I still find the most effective
> patent license I've ever heard to be one John Gilmore proposed on the FSB
> mailing list.  It is pretty much a "GPL" for patents; it says 
> 
>   You may use this patent for any reason so long as:
> 
>     a) You yourself do not own any patents, or
>     b) You agree to license all your patents under this license

This is a very different thing than a "GPL for patents". The GPL "for
copyrights" does *not* say you can't have any copyrighted works unless
they are also under the GPL. I think it would be a far better tactic to
make it much closer to a copyleft (patentleft). You can use the patent
freely, but you may not use it in, or combine it with, any software that
has differently licensed patents. Including derivatives.

It's an unfortunate reality in the technology business that patents
have become a kind of medium of exchange. Sometimes businesses file for
patents solely so that they can trade it for the use of someone elses.
But by making the above license more like copyleft, a business can have
a "free" patents, and still get to trade it for another's technology.
In essense, the other patent holder would be purchasing rights to use
the patent in their non-free-patent product.

-- 
David Johnson
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