ANALYSIS OF OPEN-SOURCE LICENCES AND ITS IMPACT ON EVOLUTION OF COPYRIGHT REGIME

AUTHORS – RATN PRIYA CHAUHAN* & DR. LAKSHMIPRIYA VINJAMURI**, STUDENT* & ASSISTANT PROFESSOR** AT LAW COLLEGE DEHRADUN, UTTARANCHAL UNIVERSITY, DEHRADUN, UTTARAKHAND, INDIA

BEST CITATION – RATN PRIYA CHAUHAN & DR. LAKSHMIPRIYA VINJAMURI, ANALYSIS OF OPEN-SOURCE LICENCES AND ITS IMPACT ON EVOLUTION OF COPYRIGHT REGIME, INDIAN JOURNAL OF LEGAL REVIEW (IJLR), 4 (2) OF 2024, PG. 400-405, APIS – 3920 – 0001 & ISSN – 2583-2344.

ABSTRACT

For software development, two property regimes can be identified. On the one hand, corporations can establish a Private Regime that prevents any external parties from accessing the software assets of the company. It is demonstrated how, over the past 20 years, the protective tools of secrecy, copyright, and patent have been significantly enhanced. Conversely, a Public Regime of hackers can be identified, started by people, groups, or companies, where source code is shared openly. It is suggested that copyright is used in an innovative way in this instance. Authors assert their ownership rights and create “open source licences” that permit the public to access the code while controlling who may use it. A “controlled commons” is established. The analysis is divided into three main sections: the most significant open source licences to date, the issue of potential incompatibility between them (particularly with regard to the widely used General Public Licence), and the potential fragmentation into many user communities.