Copyright abandonment

[Danijel Gorupec]

As I understand, copyright is obtained by mere creation of an original work - including software. There is no need to request it...

 

However, I want to abandon this right for my software (if this is at all possible). I understand that there are some licenses available that will do this, but I find all of them way too wordy (yes, I am serious).

 

The question is... can I do it in one short sentence? Here is my try and I wonder if it has any legal weight:

 

"This is a free software and this particular copy is now completely in your ownership."

[John Cuthber]

You can pretty much do it with one symbol.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copyleft

[Danijel Gorupec]

Yes, I considered the 'copyleft' but found it too restrictive for my users (I want to be outrageously generous because this is a part of my marketing strategy. This is also why I would like to restrict my license wording to plain and striking English.)

 

Still, I would be interested to learn if the copyleft sign (or the 'copyleft' word) has any legal meaning?

[swansont]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_domain#Dedicating_works_to_the_public_domain

 

http://creativecommons.org

[Danijel Gorupec]

I just read about the CC0 license, thanks for pointing at it... Yes, this is what I legally want (only it is way too long to make it effective as a marketing tool). In the process of reading, I also found the WTFPL license that is much shorter, but its legal strength I cannot estimate.

 

I find it funny that it takes so much effort to abandon your own rights.

[Acme]

I just read about the CC0 license, thanks for pointing at it... Yes, this is what I legally want (only it is way too long to make it effective as a marketing tool). In the process of reading, I also found the WTFPL license that is much shorter, but its legal strength I cannot estimate.

 

I find it funny that it takes so much effort to abandon your own rights.

Copyrights -or copylefts- are only as good as your defense of them. If there is a violation and you don't defend against it then you in effect abandon your rights. Edited May 16, 2015 by Acme

[Danijel Gorupec]

Are you saying that there is no one else than author (copyright owner) that will start a legal action against a copyright offender?

 

Does it mean that those permissive licenses are only wordy to ensure (comfort) the end-user that it is all right to do stuff that are usually illegal? I was under impression that these wordy licenses are needed to protect the end-user from some automatic prosecution.

Edited May 16, 2015 by Danijel Gorupec

[Acme]

Are you saying that there is no one else than author (copyright owner) that will start a legal action against a copyright offender?

 

Does it mean that those permissive licenses are only wordy to ensure (comfort) the end-user that it is all right to do stuff that are usually illegal? I was under impression that these wordy licenses are needed to protect the end-user from some automatic prosecution.

Correct; only the copyright holder has the right to bring legal action.

[Danijel Gorupec]

Thanks for this explanation... In this case I only need to sound honest and make sure that end-users understand that I will never move against them. I don't need to be concerned about legal matter.

[Acme]

Thanks for this explanation... In this case I only need to sound honest and make sure that end-users understand that I will never move against them. I don't need to be concerned about legal matter.

I think it's still important you choose a copyright declaration and use it as otherwise someone else may make the claim and attempt to enforce it. If you use the Creative Commons format you need only use the appropriate symbol as it is directly connected to the 'wordy' specifics.

[Danijel Gorupec]

I see... but wold not then this other person need to somehow prove he/she is the author (copyright holder)? Okay, I suppose it is not hard to change one single byte in the code and become its author.

[Acme]

I see... but wold not then this other person need to somehow prove he/she is the author (copyright holder)? Okay, I suppose it is not hard to change one single byte in the code and become its author.

If you made no claim then all someone would have to do is make the claim as 'proof'. By claiming authorship you also leave open the possibility for others to contact you to ask questions, offer suggestions, or maybe even offer you work or compensation.

[Strange]

The simplest open source licenses are probably the MIT and BSD ones: http://opensource.org/licenses

 

You can have a general statement along the lines you suggest ("take this code and do whatever you want with it, I don't care") and then include the license terms under a heading called "Tedious Details" or similar.

 

There are a few pieces of open source software out there which have explicit statements that their owners are placing them in the public domain. (Despite the caveats noted in swansont's link earlier.)

[Danijel Gorupec]

I actually already released the software having only a statement, without legal text (whatever it means). I decided to do only that much after Acme suggested that there will be no automatic prosecution anyway...

 

I suppose the only thing a potential user should still worry about is am I going to change my mind in future (That is, if there is no automatic prosecution, then I suppose a legal text only has meaning to ensure users that copyright owner cannot change his/hers mind any more).

 

Edited May 21, 2015 by Danijel Gorupec

[Cap'n Refsmmat]

The CC0 Public Domain Dedication renounces your copyright. You probably want to use it even if it is a bit long -- it's thoroughly reviewed by lawyers and copyright experts, so it genuinely renounces your copyright interest.

 

If it's too long for marketing, just say that "this software is in the public domain", and include the CC0 logo and a link to the license deed.

 

CC0 is already widely used for this purpose. You probably don't want to invent your own. Corporate attorneys get nervous when they see license terms they've never seen before.

[Externet]

Try if contacting this guy shines some light :

 

----> http://www.vetusware.com/