content/white_papers/OOo_project/strategy.html - openoffice-org - Git at Google

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 <title>Licensing Strategy</title>
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 <body>
 <h2>Licensing Strategy</h2>

 <br>
 <p>
 OpenOffice.org uses a dual-license strategy for the source code of the projects
 technology. The two licenses are:
 </p>
 <ul>
 <li type=disc><a href="../../licenses/gpl_license.html">GNU General Public License (GPL)</a>
 <li type=disc><a href="../../licenses/sissl_license.html">Sun Industry Standard Source License (SISSL)</a></ul>
 <p>
 The dual-license mechanism enables the fullest degree of open and free access to the
 technology for both the GPL community as well as other developer communities
 that all wish to develop and deliver compatible, high-quality products for a
 networked world — powered with open office productivity services technology.
 </p>

 <br>
 <a name=dual_license><b>The Dual License Strategy</b></a>
 <br>
 <p>
 The key objectives for licensing the OpenOffice.org project source code are to enable
 it to:
 </p>
 <br>
 <p>
 1. Be compatible and accessible to projects using the GNU GPL. The diversity,
 innovation, and momentum of projects within the GPL community mandate that
 the OpenOffice.org technology use the GPL licensing.<br><br>
 2. Provide a licensing structure for other open communities that are incompatible
 with GNU GPL licensing. Again, the extensiveness of such projects and their
 diversity of application require OpenOffice.org to be accessible to these
 communities.
 </p>
 <br>
 <p>
 3. Be available for licensing to commercial companies wanting to utilize the
 technology within their products and/or provide branded versions of the
 technology as products to their customers. Many of these companies require more
 traditional commercial license terms and ancillary support services from another
 commercial vendor.
 </p>
 <br>
 <p>
 4. Support compliance with standards for the OpenOffice.org APIs and XML-based
 file formats. Keeping a cohesive adherence to these standards is recognized as key
 for the viability of such office productivity in a universal manner. Here, the use of
 a reference standard, open publishing of the reference specifications and any
 changes to such references, compliance testing mechanisms, and marks of
 compliance are the desirable tools required to achieve this goal for products and
 services.
 </p>
 <br>
 <p>
 Through dual licensing of OpenOffice.org technology, the first three points can be
 satisfied by choosing the companion license to the GPL. The second license must be
 able to specify requirements of compliance, while providing freedom of innovation
 by requiring that incompatible changes to the standard be openly published as
 source code. The second license also needs to provide adequate flexibility for
 enabling OpenOffice.org technology to be used within commercial products without
 compromise of the commercial vendors’ other licenses used in such products. The
 Sun Industry Standard Source License (SISSL) satisfies these requirements. The
 SISSL specification of a Standard (Exhibit B) to which compliance is required
 provides the clause to which licensees must retain compliance for their use of
 technology in distributed products. If a licensee makes incompatible modifications,
 the license specifies that a reference implementation of the modifications must be
 published back to Sun Microsystems under the original SISSL terms and conditions.
 </p>

 <br>
 <p>
 <a name=specifics><b>Specifics of the OpenOffice.org License Strategy</b></a>
 </p>

 <br>
 <p>
 <a name=dual_licensing_standards><b>Dual Licensing and Standards Compatibility</b></a><br>All source code of the OpenOffice.org project is dual licensed using the GNU GPL
 licenses<sup>1</sup> and the OpenOffice.org SISSL. Exhibit B of the OpenOffice.org SISSL will
 specify that the GNU GPL or LGPL source code, with the same version number, is
 the reference standard for that specific SISSL-licensed source code version.<br><br>
 This circular mechanism ensures that SISSL licensees are required to maintain
 compatibility with the GPL community versions of the same source code APIs and
 file formats. Sun Microsystems will publish any supplied modification reference
 implementations under the dual license (GPL/LGPL + SISSL) so that all
 communities have access to such modifications.<br><br>
 The SISSL License will be issued by Sun Microsystems, Inc., to SISSL licensees via a
 click-thru license hosted at the OpenOffice.org source code repository. This license is
 granted to the licensee for no fee or royalty charge.
 </p>
 <br>
 <p>
 <a name=specification><b>Specification of Standard Versions</b></a><br>The specification for each Standard Version as used by the licensing mechanism will
 be specified and published by the OpenOffice.org project under the governance of
 the OpenOffice.org Steering Committee.
 </p>

 <br>
 <p>
 <a name=staroffice><b>StarOffice Brand Usage</b></a>
 </p>

 <br>
 <p>
 In conjunction with the dual-license scheme, Sun Microsystems will provide a
 compatibility testing service to OpenOffice.org licensees for a fee. This service will
 be charged on a per-platform, per-version basis. Upon achieving compatibility
 certification for the specific product, the licensee will be authorized to use the
 StarOffice brand on the version of their product for that specifically tested platform
 version.
 </p>
 <br>
 <p>
 The provisions for use of the well-known StarOffice mark on a license's compatible
 products benefits them by delivering the market recognition already established by
 the mark and leveraging expanding market recognition of the mark developed by
 Sun Microsystems and other StarOffice mark vendors.<br><br>
 Additionally, the StarOffice mark conveys a signature of compatibility and
 confidence to users. This delivers a significant value to the vendor, their product,
 and the user.
 </p>

 <br>
 <p>
 1. <b>Note:</b> All libraries and embeddable components of the OpenOffice.org dual license will use the Lesser GPL (LGPL).
 </p>

 <p align=right valign=bottom><a href="introduction.html">back</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<a href="contributions.html">next</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p>
 </body>
 </html>
	<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Transitional//EN">
	<html>
	<head>
	<title>Licensing Strategy</title>
	<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8">
	</head>
	<body>
	<h2>Licensing Strategy</h2>

	<br>
	<p>
	OpenOffice.org uses a dual-license strategy for the source code of the projects
	technology. The two licenses are:
	</p>
	<ul>
	<li type=disc><a href="../../licenses/gpl_license.html">GNU General Public License (GPL)</a>
	<li type=disc><a href="../../licenses/sissl_license.html">Sun Industry Standard Source License (SISSL)</a></ul>
	<p>
	The dual-license mechanism enables the fullest degree of open and free access to the
	technology for both the GPL community as well as other developer communities
	that all wish to develop and deliver compatible, high-quality products for a
	networked world — powered with open office productivity services technology.
	</p>

	<br>
	<a name=dual_license><b>The Dual License Strategy</b></a>
	<br>
	<p>
	The key objectives for licensing the OpenOffice.org project source code are to enable
	it to:
	</p>
	<br>
	<p>
	1. Be compatible and accessible to projects using the GNU GPL. The diversity,
	innovation, and momentum of projects within the GPL community mandate that
	the OpenOffice.org technology use the GPL licensing.<br><br>
	2. Provide a licensing structure for other open communities that are incompatible
	with GNU GPL licensing. Again, the extensiveness of such projects and their
	diversity of application require OpenOffice.org to be accessible to these
	communities.
	</p>
	<br>
	<p>
	3. Be available for licensing to commercial companies wanting to utilize the
	technology within their products and/or provide branded versions of the
	technology as products to their customers. Many of these companies require more
	traditional commercial license terms and ancillary support services from another
	commercial vendor.
	</p>
	<br>
	<p>
	4. Support compliance with standards for the OpenOffice.org APIs and XML-based
	file formats. Keeping a cohesive adherence to these standards is recognized as key
	for the viability of such office productivity in a universal manner. Here, the use of
	a reference standard, open publishing of the reference specifications and any
	changes to such references, compliance testing mechanisms, and marks of
	compliance are the desirable tools required to achieve this goal for products and
	services.
	</p>
	<br>
	<p>
	Through dual licensing of OpenOffice.org technology, the first three points can be
	satisfied by choosing the companion license to the GPL. The second license must be
	able to specify requirements of compliance, while providing freedom of innovation
	by requiring that incompatible changes to the standard be openly published as
	source code. The second license also needs to provide adequate flexibility for
	enabling OpenOffice.org technology to be used within commercial products without
	compromise of the commercial vendors’ other licenses used in such products. The
	Sun Industry Standard Source License (SISSL) satisfies these requirements. The
	SISSL specification of a Standard (Exhibit B) to which compliance is required
	provides the clause to which licensees must retain compliance for their use of
	technology in distributed products. If a licensee makes incompatible modifications,
	the license specifies that a reference implementation of the modifications must be
	published back to Sun Microsystems under the original SISSL terms and conditions.
	</p>

	<br>
	<p>
	<a name=specifics><b>Specifics of the OpenOffice.org License Strategy</b></a>
	</p>

	<br>
	<p>
	<a name=dual_licensing_standards><b>Dual Licensing and Standards Compatibility</b></a><br>All source code of the OpenOffice.org project is dual licensed using the GNU GPL
	licenses<sup>1</sup> and the OpenOffice.org SISSL. Exhibit B of the OpenOffice.org SISSL will
	specify that the GNU GPL or LGPL source code, with the same version number, is
	the reference standard for that specific SISSL-licensed source code version.<br><br>
	This circular mechanism ensures that SISSL licensees are required to maintain
	compatibility with the GPL community versions of the same source code APIs and
	file formats. Sun Microsystems will publish any supplied modification reference
	implementations under the dual license (GPL/LGPL + SISSL) so that all
	communities have access to such modifications.<br><br>
	The SISSL License will be issued by Sun Microsystems, Inc., to SISSL licensees via a
	click-thru license hosted at the OpenOffice.org source code repository. This license is
	granted to the licensee for no fee or royalty charge.
	</p>
	<br>
	<p>
	<a name=specification><b>Specification of Standard Versions</b></a><br>The specification for each Standard Version as used by the licensing mechanism will
	be specified and published by the OpenOffice.org project under the governance of
	the OpenOffice.org Steering Committee.
	</p>

	<br>
	<p>
	<a name=staroffice><b>StarOffice Brand Usage</b></a>
	</p>

	<br>
	<p>
	In conjunction with the dual-license scheme, Sun Microsystems will provide a
	compatibility testing service to OpenOffice.org licensees for a fee. This service will
	be charged on a per-platform, per-version basis. Upon achieving compatibility
	certification for the specific product, the licensee will be authorized to use the
	StarOffice brand on the version of their product for that specifically tested platform
	version.
	</p>
	<br>
	<p>
	The provisions for use of the well-known StarOffice mark on a license's compatible
	products benefits them by delivering the market recognition already established by
	the mark and leveraging expanding market recognition of the mark developed by
	Sun Microsystems and other StarOffice mark vendors.<br><br>
	Additionally, the StarOffice mark conveys a signature of compatibility and
	confidence to users. This delivers a significant value to the vendor, their product,
	and the user.
	</p>

	<br>
	<p>
	1. <b>Note:</b> All libraries and embeddable components of the OpenOffice.org dual license will use the Lesser GPL (LGPL).
	</p>

	<p align=right valign=bottom><a href="introduction.html">back</a>     <a href="contributions.html">next</a>     </p>
	</body>
	</html>