[Catalog-sig] [PSF-Board] Troubled by changes to PyPI usage agreement

[Noah Kantrowitz]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: catalog-sig-bounces+noah=coderanger.net at python.org
> [mailto:catalog-sig-bounces+noah=coderanger.net at python.org] On Behalf
> Of M.-A. Lemburg
> Sent: Friday, December 04, 2009 11:24 AM
> To: VanL
> Cc: Ben Finney; psf at python.org; catalog-sig at python.org
> Subject: Re: [Catalog-sig] [PSF-Board] Troubled by changes to PyPI
> usage agreement
> 
> VanL wrote:
> > Doug Hellmann wrote:
> >> We have to grant the PSF the rights to distribute the files if we're
> >> uploading them to be hosted on PyPI.  Does the new wording imply
> that
> >> we're licensing the use of that code under those terms, or just
> >> granting distribution rights the file containing the code?  It feels
> >> like the latter, but I don't know how the word "perform" is
> >> interpreted in this context.
> > Doug is essentially right here. By this agreement, the PSF gets the
> > particular rights to:
> > - reproduce: We can copy it (in memory, or in preparation to send a
> copy)
> > - distribute: We can cause other people to receive it.
> > - transmit: We can send it out on a signal.
> > - display: We can show the content to other people.
> > - perform: A term of art for showing some sorts of works (think
> > audio-visual or theater works)
> > - publish: We can offer and provide copies to other people.
> > ... including in digital form: And do all that stuff using computer
> > representations of whatever you upload.
> >
> > You will find that all of these are very closely related, if not
> > synonyms. Basically, we can receive your work, copy it, and provide
> it
> > to other people in a variety of ways. This does not give the PSF the
> > right to relicense your work, nor to create derivative works -- just
> to
> > pass it on to anybody who happens to wander by the PyPI web page.
> 
> Right, but why does the clause also give this permission
> to "all other users of the web site" and why does the license
> need to be "irrevocable" ?

PyPI has user-run mirrors, some internal and some public.

--Noah