[cc-community] public performance and GPL

Anthony osm at inbox.org
Tue Jan 10 20:53:48 EST 2012


On Tue, Jan 10, 2012 at 12:42 PM, Richard Fontana <rfontana at redhat.com> wrote:
> Public performance was not meant to be excluded from the bundle of
> rights granted under GPLv3; I would say that the blanket permission to
> "run" (FSF's fundamental "Freedom 0") was understood by those drafting
> the license to include public display and public performance not
> involving transfers of physical/digital copies, since with software
> they would necessarily (at least ordinarily) involve the act of
> executing the software. "Convey" is not meant to include public
> performance that does not "enable[] other parties to make or receive
> copies".

Regarding the definition of "convey", I'd think that would include
radio broadcasts.

And regarding your definition of "run", 1) I definitely don't think it
includes public performance/display; and 2) public performances,
including radio broadcasts (think HD radio) often *do* involve
transfers of digital copies.

> So I would say that public performance of a GPLv3-licensed song is
> analogous to non-'convey'ing execution of a program in which the
> output of the program happens to be public. Therefore, the source code
> requirements are not triggered.

Even a public performance by means of a digital audio transmission?
In your first paragraph you seem to exclude digital audio
transmissions.  But in this paragraph you seem to lay out a blanket
statement for all public performances.

> I see no reason for a different conclusion under GPLv2. It says
> "Activities other than copying, distribution and modification are not
> covered by this License; they are outside its scope." "Outside its
> scope" is here, I think, understood by the FSF (and, I'd think, most
> GPLv2 licensors) to mean "not limited as a matter of copyright
> law".

If that's what is meant, then it's wrong.  Public performances and
public displays *are* limited as a matter of copyright law.  If the
license doesn't cover them, then the default is that you have no
permission.


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