Open Database License/Contributor Terms/Human readable
The following is a work in progress summary of the OpenStreetMap Contributor Terms 1.0. Currently the terms are only available as a long legal document in English, Italian and French. Users signing up for a new account are unlikely to read them or understand them.
- NEW: The legal working group is working on their own terms.
Below is a work in progress summary of the terms. The summary is obviously not meant to be canonical. Unlike the main terms it'll be available for translation on Translatewiki. So it's important that it's:
- Short and simple - Users are more likely to read it.
- Doesn't use complex legal language - Translation are likely to creep in if complex legalese is used.
Summary content
What the summary should say:
- Until now we've:
- Been using the CC-BY-SA 2.0 license.
- Not requiring rights assignment. The OpenStreetMap foundation has had no special rights over contributions.
- But now:
- We're moving away from CC-BY-SA 2.0 to ODbL 1.0 for the database and DbCL 1.0 for the content.
- To contribute, you have to grant the OpenStreetMap foundation an irrevocable right to re-license your content under any future free license.
- This is non-exclusive, i.e. you can still use your content in other places.
- The foundation can only pick a new free license if it's approved by the OSMF membership (a foundation of paid-up members) and a 2/3 majority vote of active contributors
- You'll be considered an active contributor if you've edited in at least 3 out of the last 12 months and don't take longer than 3 weeks to reply to E-Mail.
- If you want attribution you should add your name to the Contributors page.
Summary text (please improve!)
OpenStreetMap is moving away from the CC-BY-SA 2.0 license to a mixture of the ODbL 1.0 (for the database) and DbCL 1.0 (for the content).
To facilitate this and future license changes you are required to accept the OpenStreetMap Contributor Terms (full text below). By agreeing, you grant the OpenStreetMap foundation an irrevocable permission to relicense your contributions under any free license. The foundation in turn can only pick those free licenses that are approved by its members, and 2/3 of active contributors.
An active contributor is anyone who's contributed data in at least 3 out of the last 12 months, and doesn't take more than 3 weeks to respond to E-Mail. You'll be contacted at the E-Mail address you've provided regarding any future license change if this applies to you.
If you wish to be personally attributed for your works, please add your name to the contributors page on the wiki.
Links
- Non-legalese version of the contributor terms on Ævar Arnfjörð Bjarmason's blog