[cc-community] Why the GPL-incompatibility?

Daniel Brockman daniel at brockman.se
Sat Feb 10 09:56:19 EST 2007


Hi Greg,

>> Why are all the Creative Commons licenses incompatible
>> with the GPL?
>
> (broad brushstrokes follow.  Nit-pickers need not apply)
>
> If you're talking about converting content between the
> CC-SA and GNU-GPL licenses, then the problem is basically
> a side effect of copyleft.

[...]

Thank you very much for the good and clear explanation of
why copyleft licenses are unlikely to be compatible.

The license I am most interested in, however, is CC-BY.

> Since no CC license has a "source code" requirement,
> I don't think any CC license will ever be directly
> interchangable with GNU-GPL.

Let me ask this:  How come the BSD license (among others)
manages to be compatible with the GPL, but CC-BY fails?

I have tried to understand the text of CC-BY, but it keeps
giving me headaches.

This part, for example, seems to say that it is copyleft:

   4. Restrictions.  The license granted in Section 3 above
   is expressly made subject to and limited by the following
   restrictions:
   
      1. You may distribute, publicly display, publicly
      perform, or publicly digitally perform the Work only
      under the terms of this License, and You must include
      a copy of, or the Uniform Resource Identifier for,
      this License with every copy or phonorecord of the
      Work You distribute, publicly display, publicly
      perform, or publicly digitally perform.  You may not
      offer or impose any terms on the Work that alter or
      restrict the terms of this License or the recipients'
      exercise of the rights granted hereunder.

I am such a legalese-illiterate.

> I hope this helps.

It does.  Thank you.

-- 
Daniel Brockman <daniel at brockman.se>



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