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What kind of a license doesn't have to be observed by one of the parties to the license? That's every license. You might be thinking of a contract, which is a

What kind of a license doesn't have to be observed by one of the parties to the license? That's every license. You might be thinking of a contract, which is a binding agreement between two parties. Think of a license as a grant of certain rights to the licensee. There's no binding agreement upon the licenser. (Not an HN lawyer.)

jnbiche 7y ago
> You might be thinking of a contract, which is a binding agreement between two parties. Nope. I'm thinking of a license, which is a contract (go look it up if you don't believe me). And contracts can be a binding agreement between two or more parties.
- Dayshine 7y ago
  > which is a contract (go look it up if you don't believe me). I've looked it up, I can't find anything. Apparently in germany GPL is a contract, as in germany contracts don't require consideration. But in the US, GPL is a license, not a contract.
  - jnbiche 7y ago
    Based on everything I'm reading in IP Law and contract law texts online, that is not the case. Here's one from Cornell Law School that specifically says that "Regardless of whether the parties call their transaction a license, sale, lease, or something else, the Principles would apply", where said "Principles" are those of software contract law. And then they discuss how they fall under contract law. https://scholarship.law.cornell.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1191&context=facpub https://scholarship.law.cornell.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?arti... Here's another from UChicago Law that takes it for granted that the legal reader understands that licenses are legal contracts, since it's full of quotes like "all licenses are vulnerable to the usual attacks that can be leveled against all types of contracts". https://chicagounbound.uchicago.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2069&context=journal_articles https://chicagounbound.uchicago.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?arti...

jnbiche 7y ago

> You might be thinking of a contract, which is a binding agreement between two parties. Nope. I'm thinking of a license, which is a contract (go look it up if you don't believe me). And contracts can be a binding agreement between two or more parties.

Dayshine 7y ago
> which is a contract (go look it up if you don't believe me). I've looked it up, I can't find anything. Apparently in germany GPL is a contract, as in germany contracts don't require consideration. But in the US, GPL is a license, not a contract.
- jnbiche 7y ago
  Based on everything I'm reading in IP Law and contract law texts online, that is not the case. Here's one from Cornell Law School that specifically says that "Regardless of whether the parties call their transaction a license, sale, lease, or something else, the Principles would apply", where said "Principles" are those of software contract law. And then they discuss how they fall under contract law. https://scholarship.law.cornell.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1191&context=facpub https://scholarship.law.cornell.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?arti... Here's another from UChicago Law that takes it for granted that the legal reader understands that licenses are legal contracts, since it's full of quotes like "all licenses are vulnerable to the usual attacks that can be leveled against all types of contracts". https://chicagounbound.uchicago.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2069&context=journal_articles https://chicagounbound.uchicago.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?arti...