lkml.org 
[lkml]   [1999]   [May]   [24]   [last100]   RSS Feed
Views: [wrap][no wrap]   [headers]  [forward] 
 
Messages in this thread
/
Date
From
SubjectRe: Fw: Annoying GPL issues
On Fri, 21 May 1999, Jeff Merkey wrote:
> Our attorneys have reviewed the GPL language, and to be honest, it has about
> as many holes in it as Jed Clampet's Cabin on the Beverly Hillbillies. The
> wind blows right through it. Copyright infringement claims seem to be the
> only relief available, but how do you show a damages case when you are
> giving the code away for free? The answer is that you really cannot.

[Assumption: we are talking about United States law]

There are (at least) three things it appears your attorneys have overlooked.

(1) The major goal in such a suit would be to stop the infringement, not to
squeeze money out of the infringer.

(2) The copyright owner could elect statutory damages instead of actual
damages.

(3) Damages include the infringer's profits from the infringement. If the
infringer is not giving the infringing code away for free, this could be
a substantial sum.

> There's also the issue of irreparable harm. You might get an injunction
> against someone if you can show irreparable harm, but the Federal Rules of
> Civil Procedure require that no injunction can be "adverse to the public
> interest" or it cannot issue from a court.
...

That concerns preliminary injunctions.

--Tim Smith


-
To unsubscribe from this list: send the line "unsubscribe linux-kernel" in
the body of a message to majordomo@vger.rutgers.edu
Please read the FAQ at http://www.tux.org/lkml/

\
 
 \ /
  Last update: 2005-03-22 13:51    [W:0.069 / U:0.292 seconds]
©2003-2020 Jasper Spaans|hosted at Digital Ocean and TransIP|Read the blog|Advertise on this site