Re: GPL and NDAs

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Article #23063

#23063

From: Jeffrey B. Siegal
Date: Sun, 30 Jan 2000 00:00

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Isaac wrote:
> Exactly right.  Copyright law does give certain rights to people who own
> copies of software.  Some of these are rights that publishers of
> proprietary software don't want you to use.  But the concept of owning
> rather than possessing copies of software are certainly supported by
> law.

You *can* own copies of software, the way you own a book, but you do not need
to own a copy to use or have a license to use a copy.  Most software license
agreements state that you do not own the software at all, it is simply made
available for your use.

If transfer of ownership is required for GPL, then GPL is dead.  Binary copies
can be "distributed" (but are not really distributed, you claim) under a
license which states that ownership of all copies of the software remains with
the licensor, but the licencee is granted only a license to use, not
ownership.

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From: "Jeffrey B. Siegal" <jbs@quiotix.com>
Subject: Re: GPL and NDAs
Date: 2000/01/30
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