[License-discuss] Question about Blue Oak License

[Bruce Perens]

Louis Villa contributed this license and is a legal professional, although
I don't believe that law practice is what he does for a living these days.
He's easy to find online. I believe that he even had the cooperation of
other lawyers in making this license, there was a blue oak organization for
a time. But it looks like they strove so much for simplicity that they have
not considered moral rights administrations.

On Wed, Mar 13, 2024 at 6:47 AM Shuji Sado <shujisado at gmail.com> wrote:

> Hi everyone.
>
> # For some reason my email to OSI arrives two days late, so my reply
> may be delayed.
>
> I have a question about the Blue Oak Model License.  see
> https://opensource.org/license/blue-oak-model-license
>
> This license seems to be an easy-to-read and understandable license
> for corporate legal professionals.
> However, I have recently started to think that the following copyright
> clause may not work in Japan, where I live.
>
>  "Each contributor licenses you to do everything with this software
> that would otherwise infringe that contributor's copyright in it."
>
> In Japan, copyright, which is a property right, and moral rights are
> separated. Copyright allows you to grant rights to others and to
> transfer those rights.
> Moral rights, however, cannot be transferred. The BlueOak license
> clearly states "copyright," but this would probably be interpreted in
> Japan as not including moral rights.
> In other words, it seems to me that an author who releases software
> under this license can stop users from distributing or modifying the
> software at any time.
>
> To prevent this, I think it is necessary to mention the moral rights
> in the article or to insert a statement that the software is licensed
> for copying, distribution, and modification.
>
> I am writing from a Japanese context, but perhaps there are similar
> problems in other jurisdictions that recognize moral rights. I would
> like to hear opinions here.
>
> ---
> Shuji Sado
> Chairman, Open Source Group Japan
> https://opensource.jp/
>
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-- 
Bruce Perens K6BP
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