Common Public License
| Author | IBM |
|---|---|
| Latest version | 1.0 |
| Publisher | IBM |
| Published | May 2001 |
| SPDX identifier | CPL-1.0 |
| Debian FSG compatible | Yes[1] |
| FSF approved | Yes[2] |
| OSI approved | Yes[3] |
| GPL compatible | No[2] |
| Copyleft | Limited[2] |
| Linking from code with a different licence | Yes |
In computing, the Common Public License (CPL) is a free software / open-source software license published by IBM. The Free Software Foundation and Open Source Initiative have approved the license terms of the CPL.
Definition
[edit]The CPL has the stated aims of supporting and encouraging collaborative open-source development while still retaining the ability to use the CPL'd content with software licensed under other licenses, including many proprietary licenses. The Eclipse Public License (EPL) consists of a slightly modified version of the CPL.
The CPL has some terms that resemble those of the GNU General Public License (GPL), but some key differences exist. A similarity relates to distribution of a modified computer program: under either license (CPL or GPL), one must make the source code of a modified program available to others.
CPL, like the GNU Lesser General Public License, allows non-CPL-licensed software to link to a library under CPL without requiring the linked source code to be made available to the licensee.
CPL lacks compatibility with both versions of the GPL because it has a "choice of law" section in section 7, which restricts legal disputes to a certain court. Another source of incompatibility is the differing copyleft requirements.[2]
To reduce the number of open source licenses, IBM and Eclipse Foundation agreed upon using solely the Eclipse Public License in the future.[4] Open Source Initiative therefore lists the Common Public License as deprecated and superseded by EPL.
Projects using the Common Public License
[edit]- Microsoft has released its Windows Installer XML (WiX) developer tool, Windows Template Library (WTL) and the FlexWiki engine under the CPL as SourceForge projects.
- Some projects of the COIN-OR Foundation use the CPL.
See also
[edit]
References
[edit]- ^ List of DFSG (Debian Free Software Guidelines) approved Licenses
- ^ a b c d "Various Licenses and Comments about Them". Retrieved 2016-10-05.
- ^ "Open Source Licenses by Category". 19 September 2006. Retrieved 2016-10-05.
- ^ Mike Milinkovich - One Small Step Towards Reducing License Proliferation
External links
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