[Foundation-l] re GFDL publisher credit

Fri Jul 14 21:54:03 UTC 2006

On 7/14/06, Ray Saintonge <saintonge at telus.net> wrote:
> Anthony wrote:
>
> >On 7/13/06, Ray Saintonge <saintonge at telus.net> wrote:
> >
> >
> >>>Robert Scott Horning said:
> >>>The precedence that I would like to use for why the WMF should hold
> >>>copyright on Wikimedia project content is the same reason why the Free
> >>>Software Foundation holds copyright for the GNU projects:  If there is a
> >>>copyright violation, they can be a legal party to enforcing the
> >>>copyright and defending the GPL.
> >>>
> >>>
> >>My preference here would be to have each editor appoint WMF as a
> >>non-exclusive agent for the purpose of taking all steps to defend
> >>editors' copyrights.
> >>
> >>
> >Optionally, I hope.  I personally have no desire to sue people over
> >the vast majority of my legal rights under copyright law.  Basically,
> >as long as you don't take my works and then create a non-free
> >derivative, I don't care what you do with it, at least so far as
> >copyright law is concerned.
> >
> I think that that view is shared by most of us who have a philosophical
> attachment to the concept of free information.
>
I dunno.  I've seen an awful lot of lawsuit-happy Wikipedians.  I've
even been legally threatened by a number of them for running a mirror
site.

> >Frankly, I'd hope that the WMF would do the same, and only use
> >lawsuits to make works more free, not less.
> >
> I presume that with "optionally" you are referring to WMF retaining the
> option to sue or not sue based on the circumstances of the situation,
> and not that each editor has an option about naming WMF as agent ...
> sometimes.  The alternative would only create more confusion when the
> WMF's right to pursue the matter comes up.  On the other hand, it would
> be ridiculous to demand that WMF pursue with vigour every bit of
> perceived copyvio.
>
What I'm saying is that if the WMF requires me to give it the right to
enter into copyright lawsuits on my behalf, I won't ever contribute
anything to Wikipedia or any of the other projects again.  (I suppose
I'd make an exception for those things that I'm willing to give to the
public domain).

I don't want the WMF to have the option to sue or not sue based on the
circumstances of the situation.  I obviously can't stop others from
giving them this right, but I won't give it to them for my own
content.

Anthony