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Edit pasted automatic downstream license text.

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This pasted text was quite useful and well-written.  I've incorporated
it fully, although it needed some copy edit work and additional
material.
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Bradley M. Kuhn 2014-11-12 11:48:12 -05:00
parent bf85191e63
commit d6bf6f07b1
1 changed files with 20 additions and 14 deletions
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gpl-lgpl.tex
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@ -2270,28 +2270,34 @@ In short, GPLv2~\S6 says that your license for the software is your one and
only copyright license allowing you to copy, modify and distribute the
software.
% FIXME-URGENT: integrate
% Also, link to GPLv3 section
This is GPLv2’s ``automatic downstream licensing'' provision. Each time you
GPLv2~\S6 is GPLv2’s ``automatic downstream licensing''
provision\footnote{This section was substantially expanded for clarity and
detail in \hyperref[GPLv3s10]{GPLv3~\S10}.. Each time you
redistribute a GPL’d program, the recipient automatically receives a license
from each original licensor to copy, distribute or modify the program subject
to the conditions of the license. There is no requirement to take any action
to ensure the downstream recipient’s acceptance of the license terms, see
above. This places every copyright holder in the chain of descent of the code
to the conditions of the license. The redistributor need not take any
to ensure the downstream recipient’s acceptance of the license terms.
This places every copyright holder in the chain of descent of the code
in legal privity, or direct relationship, with every downstream
redistributor. Two legal effects follow. First, as \S6 says, parties
themselves remaining in compliance have valid permissions for all actions
including modification and redistribution even if their immediate upstream
supplier of the software has been terminated for license violation. Their
redistributor. Two legal effects follow. First, downstream parties
who remain in compliance have valid permissions for all actions
(including modification and redistribution) even if their immediate upstream
supplier of the software has been terminated for license
violation\footnote{While this is legally true, as a practical matter, a
failure of ``complete, corresponding source'' (CCS) provisioning by an
upstream could make it effectively impossible for a downstream party to
engage in a commercial redistribution pursuant to
\hyperref[GPLv2s3]{GPLv2~\S3(a--b)}. (\S~\ref{upstream} in the Compliance
Guide portion of this tutorial discussed related details.)}.
Downstream's
licensed rights are not dependent on compliance of their upstream, because
their licenses issue directly from the copyright holder. Second, automatic
termination cannot be cured by obtaining additional copies from an alternate
supplier: the license permissions emanate only from the original licensors,
and if they have automatically terminated permission, no act by any
intermediate license holder can restore those terminated rights.
intermediate license holder can restore those terminated
rights.
%FIXME-URGENT: end
\section{GPLv2~\S7: ``Give Software Liberty or Give It Death!''}
\label{GPLv2s7}