[Python-legal-sig] Making it possible to accept contributions without CLA

[M.-A. Lemburg]

On 09.12.2014 11:19, anatoly techtonik wrote:
> node.js dropped CLA and Python should do the same.
> https://www.joyent.com/blog/broadening-node-js-contributions
> 
>> The PSF needs to be able to defend the IP rights in Python
> 
> PSF could handle such issues on a case by case basis. If it
> chooses to generalize it then I read it as mistrust in
> contributors. If it mistrusts me, why I should trust it? It is a
> wrong way.

This doesn't have anything to do with trust in contributors.

We can only defend the IP rights in court, if we have such
rights and can prove this.

Without the CLAs we would have no such proof and indeed no rights
to defend the IP rights arising from contributions, since the PSF
would only be a user of the contribution's code license and only
the contributor could defend the rights to the contributed code.

Such a setup would neither be in the interest of the contributor
nor the PSF or the Python community.

-- 
Marc-Andre Lemburg
Director
Python Software Foundation
http://www.python.org/psf/