[Fsfe-ie] RMS talk, copyright and license

[Glenn Strong]

On Tuesday, June 1, 2004 at 14:45 +0100, Conor Daly wrote:
> On Tue, Jun 01, 2004 at 01:02:31PM +0100 or so it is rumoured hereabouts, 
> David Cathcart thought:
> > Technically i own the copyright, but i hereby give it to the ifso.
> > I suggested a faily free liscence that would allow things like this.
> > Possibly something like:
> > 
> > Copyright 2004 Ifso.
> >  Verbatim copying, distribution, and perforance of all or part of these
> >  video/audio recordings is permitted in any medium provided this notice
> > is preserved.
> 
> Might I suggest you retain copyright and assign full rights to ifso such
> that it remains within someone's control should ifso expire.

I've had large quantities of coffee now, so I can give a more accurate
than I previously did.

The legal pedantry of the issue: it is my understanding that IFSO
cannot own anything (we would have to incorporate a company or the
like in order to do that), and assets are held by trustees.

Therefore, either David holds this in trust for IFSO, or he assigns it
to some other individual to do so. I see no advantage to assigning it
to anyone else, so David should just hang on to it and allow IFSO a
license to use it (as Conor proposed).
 
> I presume your email is not sufficient legal assignment of rights and
> you'd have to do it in writing also.  Is this correct?

Such would be my understanding. But there is no legal entity "IFSO"
that could enter into such an arrangement (clubs and societies, which
is what we are, don't have enough legal standing). If there was, then
if IFSO went away the usual rules for disposing of the assets of a
company would apply to copyrights held by IFSO, I imagine.

-- 
Glenn Strong