"Alfred M. Szmidt" wrote: > > > Breach of a copyright license is copyright infringement. > > Doing an act *which is not licensed* is copyright infringement. If > I authorize you to copy my work verbatim, and you change it, you > infringe my copyright. > > Doing a licensed act but failing to comply with conditions is > *breach of contract* If I authorize you to copy in return for > payment of $1 per copy, and you don't pay, you are in breach of the > license. Yet I can only sue you for non-performance and demand the > dollar per copy. > > The act of `not paying $1 per copy' wasn't licensed, so this is > copyright infringement (even according to your own words).
You really need to illuminate US judiciary on that. "We think that the payment of royalties and the inclusion of a notice crediting James's authorship are to be considered covenants, not conditions. The construction of the licensing agreement is governed by New York law. See Bartsch v. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Inc. , 391 F.2d 150, 153 (2d Cir. 1968). Generally speaking, New York respects a presumption that terms of a contract are covenants rather than conditions ... 'The law favors covenants, rather than conditions precedent.'), aff'd , 193 N.Y. 661 (1908)." Graham id. The GPL contains no conditions precendent. (At least under New York law. :-) ) Here the word "conditions" is historical and refers generally to "conditions precedent"... some condition that must be satisfied *before* a grant of rights is effective. Failure to meet a "condition precedent" stated in a contract gives rise to an infringement violation under section 504 because you never got permission in the first place. Conditions precedent are disfavored in the law: "Nor can we construe payment in full as a condition precedent to implying a license. Conditions precedent are disfavored and will not be read into a contract unless required by plain, unambiguous language." Sulmeyer v. United States (In re Bubble Up Delaware, Inc.), 684 F.2d 1259, 1264 (9th Cir.1982) regards, alexander. _______________________________________________ gnu-misc-discuss mailing list [email protected] http://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/gnu-misc-discuss
