APDIP and IOSN Releases Publication on Free/Open Source Software Licensing

FOSS: Licensing Author: Shun-ling Chen © UNDP-APDIP, Elsevier, 2006, 29 pages ISBN-13: 978-81-312-0422-1 ISBN-10: 81-312-0422-7 [PDF with cover, 961kB] [PDF without cover, 235kB]

As the FOSS Movement has been growing rapidly in recent years, more and more stakeholders are brought in to participate in different roles. Some of them are end users, developers, business entities, or government agencies that provide funding for FOSS projects. This e-primer is designed to provide these stakeholders with some basic knowledge about copyright law, copyrighted software and FOSS licenses. Legal issues may vary in different jurisdictions, therefore this e-primer may not be able to provide answers to all situations. But, hopefully, it will serve as a bridge between lawyers and non-lawyers in this joint venture of FOSS development.

This publication is part of the FOSS e-Primer Series produced by the International Open Source Network (IOSN). IOSN is an initiative of the UNDP Asia-Pacific Development Information Programme and supported by the International Development Research Centre of Canada.

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FOSS e-Primer Series

FOSS: A General Introduction

FOSS: Education

FOSS: Government and Policy

FOSS: Localization

FOSS: Open Standards

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