Hello, I am lawyer with a PSA: almost everyone is wrong about the OGL and SRD. Clearing up confusion.

[rcade]

I disagree. Nothing about the OGL or the SRD (the content made OGC by WotC) has changed until a court says something, and that can only happen until after WotC sues someone causing such a case to arise. What has changed is the certainty of the lack of a court case associated with their use and, yes, that is significant, but I think something that will also change back to what the status quo has been for 23 years because WotC knows that they cannot make the change they would like (or at least would have liked) to make.

It's incredibly dumb for Hasbro's strategy to be "kill the OGL" instead of "starve the OGL." The SRD-derived part of the OGL world is strong today in part because WOTC kept putting out new SRDs under the OGL so that products could fully support new rules in new editions.

If Hasbro left the OGL alone and just put all new rules and shared content under a new license, it would have the control it wants over the full modern D&D experience. Compatibles couldn't be fully compatible any more unless they adopted the new license.

 

[jgbrowning]

It's incredibly dumb for Hasbro's strategy to be "kill the OGL" instead of "starve the OGL." The SRD-derived part of the OGL world is strong today in part because WOTC kept putting out new SRDs under the OGL so that products could fully support new rules in new editions.

If Hasbro left the OGL alone and just put all new rules and shared content under a new license, it would have the control it wants over the full modern D&D experience. Compatibles couldn't be fully compatible any more unless they adopted the new license.

One of the big problems with that is that 6e is really 5.5e and just about all you'll need to create new content would already out there in SRD land.

(Edit: the other big one is that's what they did with 4e and the GSL, and they believe that environment is what created their largest competitor, so...)

joe b.

 

[pemerton]

To my mind, it seems to be "the community" that is killing the OGL, by leaving the safe harbour as soon as the weather has become rough.

That might be the most sensible move - maybe the market for D&D-adjacent RPGs has collapsed - but my point is that it is not WotC who is actually making that move. All they've done is issue a couple of press releases and circulate some draft documents.

 

[FrogReaver]

To my mind, it seems to be "the community" that is killing the OGL, by leaving the safe harbour as soon as the weather has become rough.

That might be the most sensible move - maybe the market for D&D-adjacent RPGs has collapsed - but my point is that it is not WotC who is actually making that move. All they've done is issue a couple of press releases and circulate some draft documents.

IMO press releases and draft documents are moves.

 

[rcade]

To my mind, it seems to be "the community" that is killing the OGL, by leaving the safe harbour as soon as the weather has become rough.

Does the harbor look safe to you? I see a lot of floating mines that weren't there a month ago.

 

[pemerton]

Does the harbor look safe to you?

Yes. As I've argued in this thread, I think the better view is that WotC enjoys no unilateral right to revoke the licence agreements it has entered into with 3PPS under the terms of the OGL v 1.0/1.0a. And most of the other lawyers posting in this thread think the same way.

I take it that you think the OGL was never a contract at all, and hence never a safe harbour? But then why did anyone even bother to pretend that it was a legal arrangement?

 

[ECMO3]

I think it's time to put this to rest. The OGL and the SRD are dead, and what the courts will say about is of academic interest only.

The world have moved on. There is no chance of putting the genie back into the bottle.

"The world" has not moved on. In fact Foundry has went on record saying they will continue to use OGL 1.0a for 5E material.

 

[rcade]

I take it that you think the OGL was never a contract at all, and hence never a safe harbour? But then why did anyone even bother to pretend that it was a legal arrangement?

I think the OGL is suitable for use in any project I would undertake to use existing open game content.

If I had 125 employees and eight-figure yearly revenue I would be asking myself and my lawyers whether the value of using the OGL is worth the new risk introduced by Hasbro. And I expect the answer would be no, since the value of what I offer my customers is a lot bigger than just a particular expression of a set of RPG rules. If you doubt this, just look at my goblins. They're mine and they're spectacular.

 

[Ondath]

Yes. As I've argued in this thread, I think the better view is that WotC enjoys no unilateral right to revoke the licence agreements it has entered into with 3PPS under the terms of the OGL v 1.0/1.0a. And most of the other lawyers posting in this thread think the same way.

While you're right, proving that the OGL is irrevocable will require a legal battle against Hasbro. And while WotC never officially said they're killing the safe harbour, they refused to clarify the situation with deauthorisation despite the community pleading that they do for weeks. For all we now, the deauthorisation is still underway, it's just that the replacement will be a (slightly) sweeter deal.

So given that, isn't it understandable for 3PPs to no longer consider the harbour safe and move to an actually irrevocable license that will be stewarded by a nonprofit group? And even though the ORC cannot be put back in the bottle now, Paizo said they are willing to challenge the irrevocability of the OGL if things get there, so they are going to do what you said anyway.

 

[mamba]

To my mind, it seems to be "the community" that is killing the OGL, by leaving the safe harbour as soon as the weather has become rough.

That might be the most sensible move - maybe the market for D&D-adjacent RPGs has collapsed - but my point is that it is not WotC who is actually making that move. All they've done is issue a couple of press releases and circulate some draft documents.

Well, that move would not be happening without WotC’s OGL 1.1 shenanigans, so to me it still is WotC causing it, the 3PP are just reacting to it