(Forwarded from C-FIT Content Control Outreach discussion list)
-------- Original Message -------- Subject: Protecting against liabilty for P2P usage Date: Wed, 28 Aug 2002 23:21:29 +1200 (NZST) From: David McNab <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Hi all, I'm in need of an informed opinion. The guts of it is: Can an open source EULA exclude certain parties and uses? I'm in the planning stages for an entirely new P2P architecture. While most of the usage of this P2P net will be legal, I can't rule out that some may want to use it for infringing purposes. In order to cover myself against any legal action resulting from actions beyond my control, I've thought of a plan which might actually employ the DMCA to my protection: * Encrypt the source and binary tarballs * Provide a utility which can decrypt the tarballs, given the correct decryption key * Provide another utility which provides the decryption key, upon the user accepting a 'click-wrap' EULA Since the tarballs are encrypted, the decryption key and utility would be 'anti-circumvention devices' as defined by the DMCA. The EULA could be modelled on existing open-source license models, but with some additional conditions, including: * I agree to not disclose the existence of this software, its design, architecture, implementation or capabilities, to any company or organisation which acts or has ever acted as a plaintiff (or assisted any plaintiff) in intellectual property legal actions; such groups include Recording Industry Association of America, Motion Pictures Association of America, Business Software Alliance, Microsoft Corporation, Adobe Corporation, Macromedia Corporation etc. * I agree not to disclose to the above, any details of any other parties (IP addresses, domain names or other identifying information) whom I discover are using this software. * I will not distribute this software, in source or binary form, to any other party, unless it is packaged in this click-wrap agreement. If I make any modifications to the software, I agree to enclose with my modified version (and/or patches), a copy of the original unmodified source code, and a list of modifications made, and to package all of these in the click-wrap package with this agreement intact * I, personally, and on behalf of my employer, hereby grant full indemnity to the developers of this software, the internet service providers who host this software for download, and any online service providers which carry traffic generated by this software, from any liability resulting from any usage of this software by any party. * In the event that I breach any of these conditions, I accept full and total legal responsibility for any damages that the developers of this software may incur as a result. * I recognise that if I breach any of the above conditions, then I am acting in breach of copyright. Also, by using the decryption key contained in this download to decrypt the software's packaging, I accept full responsibility for employing an 'anti-circumvention device' as defined under the Digital Millenium Copyright Act, and accept full resulting criminal liability under the Act. My question is - would this scheme have any prospects of standing up in court? Could this prove effective in protecting me from personal liability from some people's usage of the software?" Cheers David C-FIT Content Control Outreach Discussion List List Parent: [EMAIL PROTECTED] C-FIT Home: http://RealMeasures.dyndns.org/C-FIT To Subscribe/Unsubscribe: ------------------------------------------------------------ Send "[Un]Subscribe C-FIT_Release_Community" To [EMAIL PROTECTED] -- license-discuss archive is at http://crynwr.com/cgi-bin/ezmlm-cgi?3
