[Linux-aus] Re: [Osia-discuss] Chosing an Open Source licence

[John Vandenberg]

On 4/24/06, Avi Miller <avi.miller at squiz.net> wrote:
> Brendan Scott wrote:
> > This is my experience:
>
> Yeesh. So how should someone chose a licence? Is there any Open Source
> (OSI approved, yadda, yadda) licence that makes legal sense in
> Australia?

Regarding the legality of OSI licenses in Australia, here is an
interesting quote from someone who specialises in the area:

"So having reviewed a selection of the best-known open source software
licences, it appears that the prognosis is good. None of them contain
any provisions that I have identified as being unenforceable under
Australian law. For such a revolutionary mode of licensing as open
source is, it is gratifying and perhaps a little surprising that it
appears to be so compatible with traditional copyright law.

In fact the further we stray away from the Open Source Definition
[http://www.opensource.org/docs/definition.php], the more problems
with enforceability we will find. ..."  Jeremy Malcolm
(http://www.ilaw.com.au/public/licencearticle.html)

--
John