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RFC: GPL plus securities industry disclaimer suitable for main?



Folks,

I maintain GNU R (www.r-project.org and www.$ISOCODE.project.org) and a
growing number of packages from its CRAN archive (cran.r-project.org, also
country-code mirrors).  R is GPL'ed, and most of the CRAN packages are too.

One such CRAN package, GPL'ed and all, was written by someone in the
financial industry which happens to be one of the preferred habitats of
layers, and so it carries an extra rider.  Could you good souls please opine
if the following debian/copyright is ok for inclusion in Debian main?

Please do CC me as I'm not subscribed here.

Thanks, Dirk

============ draft of debian/copyright for its / r-cran-its ================
This is the Debian GNU/Linux r-cran-its package of its, a package for handling
irregularly spaced timeseries in GNU R. Its was written by Giles Heywood.

This package was created by Dirk Eddelbuettel <edd@debian.org>.
The sources were downloaded from 
	http://cran.us.r-project.org/src/contrib/

The package was renamed from its upstream name 'its' to 'r-cran-its'
to fit the pattern of CRAN (and non-CRAN) packages for R.

Its is copyright Giles Heywood and released under the GNU General Public
License (GPL), and well as additional disclaimer by Commerzbank Securities
(see below).

On a Debian GNU/Linux system, the GPL license is included in the file
/usr/share/common-licenses/GPL.

For reference, the upstream DESCRIPTION file is included below:

   Package: its
   Version: 0.1.2
   Date: 2003/07/18
   Title:  Irregular Time Series
   Author:  Portfolio & Risk Advisory Group, Commerzbank Securities
   Maintainer: Giles Heywood <giles.heywood@commerzbankib.com>
   Depends: R (>= 1.7.0), methods, ts
   Description: The its package contains an S4 class for handling 
      irregular time series
   License: GPL, Commerzbank Securities disclaimer.


The LICENSE file included in the sources follows below [ but reformated to fit
78 columns ]. The important part appear to be the beginning as well as the 'no
warranty' disclaimer at the end; the middle part is mostly securities law
boilerplate not directly applicable to software.



You agree to be bound by our standard disclaimer contained at the bottom of
this page.

You agree that you are a customer of Commerzbank who has been issued with a
valid password or the employee of such a customer who is authorised by such
customer to use such password and to access and make use of this product area.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Commerzbank Securities is the marketing name for the Global Investment Banking
Division of Commerzbank AG and for the purposes of this web site means
Commerzbank AG and any of its affiliated or associated companies throughout
the world who conduct investment business under this name: Commerzbank AG
(Germany); Commerzbank AG London Branch (UK: regulated by the SFA for the
conduct of investment business in the UK); CCME-Commerzbank Capital Markets
(Eastern Europe) AS (Czech Republic); Commerz Securities (Japan) Company Ltd,
Tokyo Branch (Japan); CCMC-Commerzbank Capital Markets Corporation (USA). Some
legal entities in the Commerzbank AG group may not be able to offer certain
services or products in your location. Commerzbank Securities also includes
directors, officers and employees of any of the affiliated or associated
companies. By accessing this site you agree to the terms of use as set out on
this page and other relevant pages within the web site.

The terms of use are to be construed in accordance with the Laws of
England. Nothing on this website is meant or designed to be taken as such as a
public offering or solicitation to the public in any jurisdiction where this
site may be accessed.

Terms of Use

The following terms of use apply to this website. Please read these carefully
regarding your use of the Commerzbank Securities website.

1. These terms govern the use of the Commerzbank Securities website. It is
separate from your customer agreement or any other agreement relating to any
other account you may have through Commerzbank Securities. The customer
agreements and other agreements to which you may be a party set forth
additional obligations you have as a Commerzbank Securities account holder. In
the event that these agreements conflict or differ from the terms of use, then
the customer agreement will prevail.

2. Information on this site is made available without responsibility on the
part of Commerzbank Securities who neither assumes nor accepts any
responsibility or liability (including negligence) in relation thereto. No
action should be taken or omitted to be taken in relation upon information
supplied on this site. Advice from a suitably qualified professional should
always be sought in relation to any particular matter or
circumstances. Nothing on this site constitutes or forms a part of any offer
for sale or subscription of, or any invitation to offer to buy or subscribe
for, any securities, nor should it or any part of it form the basis of, or be
relied upon in connection with any contract or commitment whatsoever.

3. Commerzbank Securities accepts no responsibility or liability for any
expense, loss, or damage arising out of or in any way connected with the use
of this website. Commerzbank Securities does not warrant the merchantability
or fitness for a particular use, or make any other express or implied warranty
with regard to this website. The information on this website is not intended
for distribution to, or use by, a person or entity in any jurisdiction by
person or entity in any jurisdiction or country where such distribution would
be contrary to local law or regulation.

4. Nothing on this website constitutes professional and/or financial advice to
any third party, nor does any information on this website constitute a
comprehensive or complete statement of the matters discussed. The information
may be rendered inaccurate by changes in applicable laws, other regulations
and other matters outside our control and may not be current. You are required
to acquaint yourself with any local laws and the restrictions on the usage of
this site and the availability of any services described therein.  No
information on this website should be considered an offer to sell or an offer
to buy a particular security.

5. Commerzbank Securities does not provide, nor does it intend to provide
legal, tax, or accounting advice and does not recommend the suitability of any
investment or investment strategy. You assume full responsibility for all of
your investment decisions.

6. All information contained within this website is based on data obtained
from sources considered to be reliable but no representations or guarantees
are made by Commerzbank Securities with regard to the accuracy of the
data. The opinions and estimates contained herein constitute our best
judgement at the date and time of publication and are subject to change
without notice. This website is for information purposes only and is not
intended to be andshould not be construed as an offer or solicitation to
acquire, or dispose of, any of the securities mentioned on this website.

7. Should you leave the Commerzbank Securities website by way of a link and
view content not provided by Commerzbank Securities, you do so at your own
risk. Commerzbank Securities makes no representations about any other website
which you may access through this one. When you access a non-Commerzbank
Securities website, please understand it is independent of Commerzbank
Securities and, that Commerzbank Securities has no control over the content on
that website. In addition, a link to a non-Commerzbank Securities website does
not mean that Commerzbank Securities endorses or accepts any responsibility
for the content, or the use of such website. It is up to you to take
precautions to provide that whatever you select for your use is free of such
items as viruses etc.

8. Commerzbank Securities does not deal directly with private clients and
accordingly services and products mentioned or referred to on this site are
not available to such person. Certain areas on this site are restricted to
professional and business customers of Commerzbank Securities only. Areas of
this site which are accessible to private clients are for information purposes
only.

9. Private clients who decide to use the services of Comlink or comdirect
should be aware that the regulatory protections available to clients may
differ from their own jurisdictions and the ability of these companies to
provide investment services may be limited by the laws or regulations of
either the country they are based in or where the client is located.

10. You understand that Commerzbank Securities shall not be liable for any
damage or loss resulting, directly or indirectly, from any failure, delay, or
interruption of this website due to a negligent act of Commerzbank Securities
or due to any act, event or occurrence beyond the control of Commerzbank
Securities. IN NO EVENT WILL COMMERZBANK SECURITIES BE LIABLE TO ANY PARTY FOR
ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, SPECIAL OR OTHER CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES FOR ANY USE OF
THIS WEBSITE, OR ON ANY OTHER HYPERLINKED WEBSITE, INCLUDING, WITHOUT
LIMITATION, ANY LOST PROFITS, BUSINESS INTERRUPTION, LOSS OF PROGRAMS OR ANY
OTHER DATA ON YOUR INFORMATION HANDLING SYSTEM OR OTHERWISE, EVEN IF WE ARE
EXPRESSLY ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.

11. This website is the property of Commerzbank Securities. Information is
provided by Commerzbank Securities and in certain instances, third parties,
who have legal rights and liabilities with regards to such information. You
agree not use this information for any illegal purpose. If you choose to
download any information, you agree not to further copy such information, or
redistribute such information in any manner.

12. From time-to-time Commerzbank may grant you access to specific product
areas.  Access to such product areas are subject to the terms and conditions
of this disclaimer, and may also be subject to additional terms and
conditions, as applicable. We may revoke access to such product areas at our
discretion.

13. Information relating to country of issue.

13.1 United Kingdom

Material on this website has been issued and approved in the UK by Commerzbank
AG, London Branch, a Member Firm of the London Stock Exchange, regulated by
SFA for the conduct of investment business in the UK and incorporated in
Germany with limited liability.

The value of, and income from, investments can fall as well as
rise. Purchasers of investments may not recover the amount initially
invested. Changes in the rate of exchange may have an adverse effect on the
value, or income, for securities mentioned on this site.  Investments
mentioned on this site may not be suitable for all visitors. You should seek
independent financial advice before making an investment decision based on
material on this site.

13.2 Other European Union Countries

The information contained in this website does not constitute an offer of
securities in the jurisdiction where the reader is present.

Readers who are located in a member state of the European Union should be
aware that certain transactions in financial instruments are regulated by
European Union directives on banking coordination and investment
services. Such transactions can only be executed by legal entities who qualify
as investment service providers and/or credit institutions in the European
union. This website has been published and authorised by Commerzbank AG, a
credit institution registered in Germany.

13.3 United States

Commerzbank Capital Markets Corporation ("CCMC") is a U.S. registered
broker-dealer and a member of the NYSE, NASD and SIPC. Research on this
website has been approved for use in the United States by CCMC. Any inquiries
from U.S. residents relating to material contained in this website must be
referred to CCMC. Nothing on this website should be construed as an offer or
solicitation for securities. Material is provided for information purposes
only. Certain investments may not be suitable or permitted to be distributed
in the United States as they have not been registered with the Securities and
Exchange Commission in accordance with the Securities Act of 1933.

13.4 Japan

The information contained on this website is for general informational
purposes only.  Nothing on this website should be construed as an offer for,
or a solicitation to buy or sell, the securities and financial products
referred to herein, the provision of investment advice before making any
investment decision based on any materials on this website.

In Japan, the data and services made available herein and the products
described herein are being made available by Commerz Securities (Japan)
Company Limited, Tokyo Branch.  Although Commerzbank Securities (Japan)
Company Limited, Tokyo Branch uses reasonable efforts to obtain the
information and data contained herein from sources which t believes to be
reliable, it does not warrant the accuracy, reliability or completeness of
such data or information.

Additionally, Japanese persons are required to contact Commerz Securities
(Japan) Company Limited, Tokyo Branch for further information as this is the
only Commerzbank Securities company within the Commerzbank AG Group of
companies authorised to solicit Japanese persons to enter into investment
banking and securities transactions.
------------------------------------------------------

Commerzbank AG makes no representation or warranty, express or implied,
statutory or otherwise as to condition, quality, performance or fitness for
purpose as to the irregular time series software ("Software")and specifically
disclaims any such representation and warranty including, without limitation,
any warranty of satisfactory quality or fitness for a particular purpose. By
using the Software, you agree to assume the entire risk of that use.

 LIABILITY

 In no circumstances will Commerzbank AG be liable for any loss or damage of
 any kind whatsoever whether in contract, tort (including negligence and
 breach of statutory duty), restitution or otherwise in connection with or
 arising from:

 (i)    the supply of the Software; or

 (ii) the use or inability to use the Software (including but not limited to
 loss of data or data being rendered inaccurate or a failure of the Software
 to operate with any other software or programs).

Commerzbank AG will not be liable for loss of profits, goodwill, anticipated
earnings or savings or loss of use or value of any data or equipment or loss
of contracts or other indirect or consequential loss whether arising from
negligence, breach of contract or howsoever.

 -- Dirk Eddelbuettel <edd@debian.org>, Thu Oct  2 18:49:52 2003


-- 
Those are my principles, and if you don't like them... well, I have others.
                                                -- Groucho Marx



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