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The Linux Foundation's Open Compliance Program

By Pamela Jones et al.

The Linux Foundation has announced a new compliance program to help companies that wish to use Linux and other Open Source software responsibly know how to comply with licenses. The Software Freedom Law Center is backing it, along with gpl-violations.org, the Open Invention Network, and OSI, as is pretty much every major electronics company, including Adobe, AMD, ARM Limited, Cisco Systems, Google, HP, IBM, Intel, Motorola, NEC, Nokia, Novell, Palamida, Samsung, Sony Electronics, and more than 20 other companies and organizations -- even the Codeplex Foundation supports it. Here's the complete list.

There are some new tools, and they are open sourced too, and the program also includes "training, a standard format to report software licensing information, consulting and a self-assessment checklist that will help companies comply with open source licenses."

It's not hard to comply, certainly easier, I'd say, that with proprietary licenses, but anything new to you can feel harder, and this is designed help businesses easily and effectively incorporate open source tools into their products without friction.

I guess after this there really will be no excuse not to get it right. The press release has links to all the details.

Full post as published by Groklaw on August 10, 2010 (boomark / email).