Hey Martin, Understood.
Can you file an Apache LEGAL JIRA re: the below and ask for a decision citing the below specific context? Based on your feedback I agree with you but would like the Legal committee at Apache to document/accept/agree with our interpretation. Cheers, Chris -----Original Message----- From: Martin Desruisseaux <[email protected]> Organization: Geomatys Reply-To: "[email protected]" <[email protected]> Date: Sunday, October 20, 2013 11:45 AM To: "[email protected]" <[email protected]> Subject: Re: EPSG terms of use >Hello Chris and all > >Le 19/10/13 21:33, Chris Mattmann a écrit : >> Unfortunately doesn't seem to be compat with apache. What about >> asking for them to license as ALv2 or some other Category A >> compat license? >> >> Do you know the DB's authors? > >I know the chairman of OGP's Geodesy Subcommittee, the committee >responsible for the EPSG Geodetic Parameter Dataset. However I think >that it would be hard to get a license change. OGP (not to be confused >with OGC) is "International Association of Oil & Gas Producers" and >members are big companies like Shell. What we may get however is, maybe, >some statement that clarify how OGP see their conditions in the context >of Apache (I don't know enough about legal for seeing exactly what it >could be. Maybe something saying that OGP see no problems in Apache >bundling the EPSG database in SIS). > >I would like to put some points for establishing the context: > > * We are talking about data rather than software, so I don't know if > the same license classification apply... > * Oil & Gas producers maintain and provide the EPSG database free of > charge because the cost of installing a drilling platform in the > wrong location is too high. Since they rely on map and data produced > by various actors (national map agencies, etc.), it is in their best > interest that those actors had access to the most accurate CRS > definitions when they created their data. > * The EPSG database, or something equivalent, is absolutely crucial to > a Spatial Information System. Apache SIS without EPSG would probably > lost a lot of its interest. For example EPSG codes are the the-facto > standard for specifying CRS in most web services (WMS, etc.). > * I'm not aware of any freely available alternative to the EPSG > database, and it would be impossible for us to create one. > * OpenSouce and commercial products like Proj.4, PostGIS, GDAL, > MapServer, Geoserver, OpenStreetMap, ESRI, Oracle Spatial and many > other all include the EPSG database in derived forms. I think that > basically all major GIS products around the world include the EPSG > database in one form or the other. > > >Keeping the above in mind, my interpretation of EPSG conditions are: > >1) If someone modify a "significant field" in the EPSG database (e.g. >the numerical value of a projection parameter), then OGP asks that the >modified database is not called "EPSG database" anymore. This seems a >very reasonable request to me, since the purpose is to protect the EPSG >credibility. Isn't Apache doing something similar? I mean, Apache >enforces trademark on its name. So if someone was forking an Apache >project and broke it badly, it seems to me that the Apache foundation >would not let the broken project calls itself "Apache Foo"... > >2) Anyone can sell EPSG + SIS for profit. But EPSG conditions ask to not >extract the EPSG from SIS and sell only that part, without any added >value. I realize that this condition may be the most problematic one for >Apache, but I don't see why someone would download Apache SIS and >extract only the EPSG files, without keeping anything else (he could >download directly from the EPSG web site instead)... I have not hear >about anyone doing something like that with Proj.4 (MIT license) for >instance (but admittedly the Proj.4 files are extensively transformed >compared to the original EPSG files). > >What do you think? > > Martin >
