[Freeciv] Re: software license violation

[Tomasz Wegrzanowski <maniek@xxxxxxxx>]

On Thu, Jul 20, 2000 at 04:22:13AM -0700, Brandon Van Every wrote:
> Aha.  You guys are screwed on a legal account completely different from
> copyright law.  It says very clearly in the Civ II: TOT license
> agreement at the back of the game manual (and I'm going to assume that
> it's fundamentally similiar, and in any event applicable, to all the
> other Civ games):
> 
> "OTHER RESTRICTIONS: You may not cause or permit the disclosure,
> copying, renting, licensing, sublicensing, leasing, disseminating or
> otherwise distributing of the CD-ROM or the Documentation by any means
> or in any form, without the prior written consent of Hasbro Interactive.
> You may not modify, enhance, supplement, create derivative work from,
              ^^^^^^  ^^^^^^^  ^^^^^^^^^^  ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
> adapt, translate, reverse engineer, decompile, disassemble or otherwise
  ^^^^^  ^^^^^^^^^  ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^  ^^^^^^^^^  ^^^^^^^^^^^    ^^^^^^^^^
> reduce the CD-ROM to human readable form."
  ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
> 
> So, to the extent that these clauses are enforceable in the country of
> your choice, you guys are crooks.  I think all you Free Software pundits
> know how to read a GNU General Public License, so this kind of language
> should be pretty clear and unambigous as to the rights Hasbro
> Interactive intended to bestow upon you.  Clearly, Freeciv is a
> derivative work.  You verbatim cloned the gameplay and the tech trees,
> that's your sin.  Your website makes it pretty darn clear that you're a
> derivative work, that's why you should change the name of the game and
> take a swizzle stick to your Civ compatible rules.  If the tables were
> turned and you were talking about someone abusing one of your Free
> Software products for profit, your understanding and response on the
> matter would be unambiguous.
> 
> There's also a lot of stuff about what courts these matters are to be
> bound by, and how it shall all go to Arbitration in Boston,
> Massachusetts.  Maybe your local gov't. laws apply but not if they are
> in accord with various U.N. Conventions eneumerated in the license.
> Basically, I think these guys are way ahead of you as far as what you
> can and can't do with their software license.

Under both EU and US laws you MAY LAWFULLY modify, enhance, supplement,
create derivative work from, adapt, translate, reverse engineer,
decompile, disassemble and otherwise reduce the CD-ROM to human readable form.

This part of license is a fake.
( copyright license has NOTHING to do with a contract, it can only
  state terms of distribution, usually ``All rights reserved'')