Re: Apple's APSL 2.0 " Debian Free Software Guidelines"-compliant?
Nathanael Nerode wrote:
> Ryan Rasmussen wrote:
>>10. Trademarks. This License does not grant any rights to use the
>>trademarks or trade names "Apple", "Apple Computer", "Mac", "Mac OS",
>>"QuickTime", "QuickTime Streaming Server" or any other trademarks,
>>service marks, logos or trade names belonging to Apple (collectively
>>"Apple Marks") or to any trademark, service mark, logo or trade name
>>belonging to any Contributor.
>
> This is good.
>
>>You agree not to use any Apple Marks in
>>or as part of the name of products derived from the Original Code or
>>to endorse or promote products derived from the Original Code other
>>than as expressly permitted by and in strict compliance at all times
>>with Apple's third party trademark usage guidelines which are posted
>>at http://www.apple.com/legal/guidelinesfor3rdparties.html.
>
> This is not good, because it may go beyond trademark law. This is
> acceptable if and only if Apple's trademark usage guidelines allow
> everything which is normally permitted under trademark law. I think they
> do, but the fact that they could change at any time may make this
> unacceptable. This should be considered a fixable license bug, frankly.
First of all, the changeable trademark guidelines only grant additional
permission to use the trademarks, so if the requirement to not use the
trademarks at all is Free, then the changeable trademark guidelines are
not an issue. Without that part, the clause becomes:
> You agree not to use any Apple Marks in or as part of the name of
> products derived from the Original Code or to endorse or promote
> products derived from the Original Code
Now, quoting from the Apache license, version 1.1:
> 4. The names "Apache" and "Apache Software Foundation" must
> not be used to endorse or promote products derived from this
> software without prior written permission. For written
> permission, please contact apache@apache.org.
>
> 5. Products derived from this software may not be called "Apache",
> nor may "Apache" appear in their name, without prior written
> permission of the Apache Software Foundation.
This has the same restrictions as the above clause of the APSL. So if
the Apache license, version 1.1, is considered DFSG-free, then so should
this clause of the APSL.
However, the APSL does contain other non-free provisions:
>> Any law or regulation which provides that the language of a
>> contract shall be construed against the drafter will not apply to
>> this License.
>
> What the heck does this do? I don't like the look of it.
Neither do I; I would like to know what this means in legal terms before
believing that this license is Free.
>>13.6 Dispute Resolution. Any litigation or other dispute resolution
>>between You and Apple relating to this License shall take place in the
>>Northern District of California, and You and Apple hereby consent to
>>the personal jurisdiction of, and venue in, the state and federal
>>courts within that District with respect to this License. The
>>application of the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the
>>International Sale of Goods is expressly excluded.
>
> Choice-of-venue. Not OK.
Agreed.
- Josh Triplett
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