[License-discuss] Submission of PFSSL v1.0 for OSI Review and Approval

[rafael at senties-martinelli.com]

Hello, 
  
I am writing to submit a new free/open source software license for review and approval: The Privative-Friendly Source-Shared License (PFSSL) v1.0 
  
This license aims to offer a middle ground between permissive licenses (such as MIT or BSD) and stronger copyleft licenses (such as LGPL or AGPL). It ensures compatibility with proprietary software (i.e., it is non-infective), while requiring source code availability, proper attribution, and consideration of network-based software usage. 
  
 Key details:    -  License name and version: PFSSL v1.0    -  Author: Myself (Rafael Senties Martinelli)    -  Compliance: The license complies with the Open Source Definition, including criteria such as OSD 3, 5, 6, and 9    -  Adoption: No projects are currently using the license; however, I am preparing to release some of my own software under it    -  License text: Provided as an attachment and available in HTML format    -  SPDX submission: Not yet submitted; I understand OSI approval should come first     I welcome your feedback and am available to clarify any details regarding the license or its intended use.   Thank you for your time and consideration, Rafael Senties Martinelli  
  
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.opensource.org/pipermail/license-discuss_lists.opensource.org/attachments/20250512/da16cc03/attachment.htm>
-------------- next part --------------
Privative-Friendly Source-Shared License (PFSSL) v1.0

Version 1, Revision 0, published on 25 April, 2025.

Copyright (c) 2025 Rafael Senties Martinelli. All rights reserved.

This license may be copied and shared freely, but its text must not be modified.
See Clause 14 (Integrity of License Text) for more details.

Introduction

This license is designed to allow usage and integration with other software
(including proprietary), while ensuring that the source code covered by this
license is made available to users. It also emphasizes clear attribution and
responsible reuse.

Definitions

- "Software" refers to the collection of files distributed under this license,
  including source code, header files, scripts, configuration files,
  documentation, artwork, and any other material included in the project.
- "Source code" means the preferred form of the software for making
  modifications, including build instructions, configuration files, and any
  supporting materials required to compile, install, or run the software.
- "Corresponding Source Code" for the Software means the Source Code of the
  Software, including all scripts, configuration files, and other materials as
  found in the Software's source distribution that are needed to compile,
  install, and run the Software. It specifically excludes the source code of
  libraries, tools, or other components that are external dependencies of the
  Software and are typically obtained separately.
- "You" refers to any individual or entity using, modifying, or distributing
  the software under the terms of this license.

How to Use the License

To apply the Privative-Friendly Source-Shared License (PFSSL) v1.0 to a file or
project, you should include the full license in your project, and a notice like
the following at the top of each source file:

    This file is part of [Project Name].

 Copyright (c) [Year] [Your Name or Organization]

 Licensed under the Privative-Friendly Source-Shared License (PFSSL) v1.0.
 You may use, modify, and distribute this file under the terms of that license.

 This software is provided "as is", without warranty of any kind.
 The authors are not liable for any damages arising from its use.

 See the LICENSE file located at [License location] of this project for details.


Summary of Terms

 1. Disclaimer of Warranty
 2. Limitation of Liability
 3. License Grant
 4. Linking
 5. Use of Header Files
 6. Contributions
 7. Modification Notice Requirement
 8. Naming, Attribution, and Authorship
 9. Trademarks
 10. Source Code Availability
 11. Patent Grant and Termination
 12. Termination
 13. Severability
 14. Integrity of License Text

1. Disclaimer of Warranty

This software is provided "as is" and without warranty of any kind, express or
implied, including but not limited to the warranties of merchantability, fitness
for a particular purpose, and noninfringement.

2. Limitation of Liability

In no event shall the authors or copyright holders be liable for any claim,
damages, or other liability, whether in an action of contract, tort, or
otherwise, arising from, out of, or in connection with the software or the use
or other dealings in the software.

3. License Grant

You are hereby granted, free of charge, a non-exclusive, worldwide,
royalty-free license to use, copy, modify, distribute, and sublicense this
software, subject to the following conditions.

4. Linking

You may compile, link, and use this software with any software (open-source or
proprietary). If you distribute a binary or executable that links to this
software, you are not required to release the source code of your own
application.

Note that while linking is generally permitted, the distribution of the
Software, including when statically linked or used to provide network services,
triggers source code disclosure obligations under Clause 10.

5. Use of Header Files

You are permitted to import and reference the header files provided by this
software in proprietary or closed-source software, solely for the purpose of
compiling and linking against this software. This includes the use of type
declarations, function signatures, macros, and constants.

However, this permission does not extend to the incorporation of code from
header files that implements significant logic or core functionality of the
Software. The inclusion of such code from header files into proprietary software
is not permitted under this clause, as the primary purpose of this clause is to
facilitate compilation and linking, not to allow the embedding of the
Software's operational core into a work not covered by this license. Trivial
inline definitions (such as simple data accessors or basic type manipulation)
are permitted.

This clause is intended to prevent circumvention of the source code availability
obligations under Clause 10.

6. Contributions

By submitting a contribution to this software, you agree to license your
contribution under the terms of the Privative-Friendly Source-Shared License
(PFSSL) v1.0. You must have the legal right to submit the contribution and to
license it under these terms.

If your contribution incorporates code from other open-source projects, such
incorporated code must be under terms compatible with this License. Terms are
considered compatible if they do not impose obligations on the combined work
that conflict with the terms of this License or are more restrictive than the
obligations of this License, and if their requirements (such as attribution and
license inclusion) can be fulfilled while complying with this License. When
distributing the Software that includes such incorporated code, you must also
include a copy of the original license(s) covering that code.

7. Modification Notice Requirement

If you modify this software in any way, you must include the year and the name
of the author of the modifications within each modified file. For clarity,
"name of the author" in this context includes their legal name, a commonly used
pseudonym, or a username that they use consistently for contributions to the Software.

8. Naming, Attribution, and Authorship

If you distribute the Software:

- Unmodified: You may retain the original name and identifiers.
- Modified: You must take reasonable steps to effectively differentiate your
  version from the original Software and to clearly indicate that it is a
  modified version, thereby avoiding any suggestion that your version is the
  original or endorsed by the original authors.

Methods for achieving this differentiation include changing the name of the
software and any public-facing identifiers (e.g., logos, binary names,
documentation titles). If your modifications are minor (such as bug fixes or
compatibility patches), providing a clear and prominent notice with the
software stating that it is a modified derivative and not the original, or
using versioning suffixes that indicate the modification, may be sufficient to
satisfy this requirement. However, if your modifications are significant or
could otherwise lead to confusion with the original Software, a change of the
primary name and identifiers is required to avoid suggesting your version is the
original, unless explicitly granted permission by the upstream authors.

In all cases, you must preserve all existing copyright notices and author
attributions. You may only add new authors to reflect your contributions.

You may not use the name of the original authors or contributors to endorse or
promote products derived from this software without prior written permission.

Notwithstanding the above, the original authors retain the right to request that
any distributor or user of a modified version cease using the original name and
logo of the Software. Upon receiving such a request, the distributor or user
must cease all use of the original name and logo within a reasonable timeframe.

Suggestions for Attributions and Modification Tracking

One suggested format for including detailed attribution and tracking
contributions within individual source files is as follows:

    This file is part of [Project Name].

 Copyright (c)  [200X-20XX] [Creator Name or Organization]
 Copyright (c)  [20YY-20YY] [Maintainer 1, Maintainer 2]

 Licensed under the Privative-Friendly Source-Shared License (PFSSL) v1.0.
 You may use, modify, and distribute this file under the terms of that license.

 This software is provided "as is", without warranty of any kind.
 The authors are not liable for any damages arising from its use.

 See the LICENSE file located at [License location] of this project for details.

 Contributions to this file by year:
    20XY: Person 1, Person 7, Person 9
    20XX: Person 1, Person 2, Person 3

This format clearly distinguishes between the main authors or maintainers of the
file and contributions made by others over time. By listing contributions
concisely, typically by year and name, the format helps keep the file header
manageable even in projects with a large number of contributors, without becoming
overly verbose. When making modifications, you should update the relevant
attribution information in the file header, such as copyright years or adding
your name to the list of contributors for the current year, in accordance with
Clause 6.

9. Trademarks

This License does not grant you any rights to use any trademarks, service marks,
or logos associated with the Software. Any use of such marks must comply with
applicable trademark law and be subject to separate permission from the owner of
the marks.

10. Source Code Availability

The terms for making source code available depend on whether the Software has
been modified. For the purposes of this clause, "Origin" refers to the primary
source or location where the Software was obtained under this License (e.g., a
specific URL, a package repository, or a defined distribution channel).

If you Distribute the Software, or use the Software to provide services over a
network (such as web applications, SaaS platforms, or APIs), you must adhere to
the following conditions:

Note on Package Manager Distribution: If the Software is distributed as a
package manager dependency, and the metadata of that package clearly specifies
the Origin from which the Corresponding Source Code can be obtained, this method
of distribution is generally considered to fulfill the requirement of specifying
the Origin under this section (a).

a) If the Software has NOT been Modified:

You are not required to provide the Corresponding Source Code with the
distribution or network service. Instead, you must clearly specify the Origin
from which the recipient or user can obtain the Corresponding Source Code of the
unmodified Software.

a.1) Fallback Source Availability:

If the specified Origin for the unmodified Software subsequently becomes
unavailable or no longer provides the Corresponding Source Code, and if the
method by which the Origin was specified did not guarantee that recipients
automatically received the Corresponding Source Code with their copy of the
Software, then you must then make the full Corresponding Source Code of the
unmodified Software available to recipients of any future distributions or users
of any future network interactions of the work that includes the Software, and
also to any party who previously received the work (or interacted with the
service) and requests the source code after the original Origin is no longer
available.

b) If the Software has been Modified:

You must make the full Corresponding Source Code of the Modified Software
available to the recipient or users interacting with the service. The
Corresponding Source Code must be complete and in a form that can be compiled
and used to recreate and run the Modified Software, assuming a standard
development environment with commonly available system libraries and external
dependencies. The build instructions included in the Corresponding Source Code
should clearly identify any necessary external dependencies and how they can be
obtained, but the source code for these external dependencies does not need to
be included. The method of making the Corresponding Source Code available should
be reasonable and not impose undue burdens on the recipient (e.g., providing a
download link or including it with the distribution).

c) Failure to Comply with Source Availability:

If you are required to provide the Corresponding Source Code under section a.1)
(Fallback Source Availability for unmodified Software) or section b) (If the
Software has been Modified), and you fail to provide that source code as
required by the relevant section, you must cease all further distribution and
use of the Software (as part of the larger work or service) until you are able
to comply with that section's requirements.

11. Patent Grant and Termination

Subject to the terms and conditions of this license, the upstream authors hereby
grant you a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free patent license, to make,
use, sell, offer for sale, import, and otherwise run, modify, and distribute
this software, solely to the extent that such activity would otherwise infringe
a patent owned or controlled by the upstream authors, that is necessarily
infringed by the use or distribution of this software as permitted by this
license.

If you initiate patent litigation (including a cross-claim or counterclaim in a
lawsuit) alleging that this software or a contribution incorporated within it
infringes a patent, then your rights under this license shall terminate
immediately.

12. Termination

Your rights under this License will terminate automatically if you fail to
comply with any term of this License.

If your breach of this License is curable, your rights will be reinstated if you
cure the breach within 30 days of becoming aware of the breach.

However, if your breach is a deliberate and significant violation of your
obligations, your rights under this License will terminate immediately and
permanently.

Provisions which, by their nature, should survive termination of this License
shall survive termination, including but not limited to Clauses 1 (Disclaimer
of Warranty), 11 (Patent Grant and Termination - for past litigation), and this
Clause 12.

13. Severability

If any provision of this License is held to be invalid, illegal, or
unenforceable in any respect, that invalidity, illegality, or unenforceability
shall not affect the validity, legality, or enforceability of the remaining
provisions, and the license shall be construed as if the invalid, illegal, or
unenforceable provision had never been contained herein.

14. Integrity of License Text

You may distribute this license along with the software, but you may not alter
or remove the license text itself.

Any copy of the software must be accompanied by the complete text of this
license, included in a form that is readily accessible to the recipient and
which preserves the original content and terms of the license without
alteration. This permits including the license text within documentation files,
software packages, or other standard distribution formats, provided the full
text is present and its substance is not changed.