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

    It's the actual underlying copyright element about which I am the least sure. It could very well be that everything in the SRD is "Game mechanics" and not copyrightable at all. I really don't know. To address your question, each element alone is not copyrightable, nor are single words generally...
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    Hello, I am lawyer with a PSA: almost everyone is wrong about the OGL and SRD. Clearing up confusion.

    I agree; I think that's perfectly possible. If I were WotC, I would NOT want to test the SRD for copyrightability.
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    Hello, I am lawyer with a PSA: almost everyone is wrong about the OGL and SRD. Clearing up confusion.

    The OGL is both. The licensing agreement is a contract whereby WotC grants people a license (described in the contract) in exchange for the grantee abiding by the conditions of the license. The license is the consideration, not the contract! License transactions will generally involve some...
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    Hello, I am lawyer with a PSA: almost everyone is wrong about the OGL and SRD. Clearing up confusion.

    Great question! Yes, there is a distinction between revoking the license and terminating the agreement. An important, complex point is the difference between the license itself and the licensing agreement. A "license" is not a contract, but rather a limited permission to use a property not...
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    Hello, I am lawyer with a PSA: almost everyone is wrong about the OGL and SRD. Clearing up confusion.

    Here, the difference between a necessary condition and a sufficient condition is important. The OGL describes a sufficient condition to terminate the agreement, but not a necessary condition. A sufficient condition is a condition which will always cause a certain result. A necessary condition is...
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    Hello, I am lawyer with a PSA: almost everyone is wrong about the OGL and SRD. Clearing up confusion.

    Here, a license that "specifies a set duration" is as opposed to a perpetual license. It makes sense that setting a duration on a license means it can't be terminated without cause during that period, because the stated period is part of the consideration for the contract. But a perpetual...
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    Hello, I am lawyer with a PSA: almost everyone is wrong about the OGL and SRD. Clearing up confusion.

    I agree, more or less depending upon what OGL 1.1 says. I think the primary point where we disagree is how safe it is to publish OGL 1.0. At the end of the day, I looked at it, and it seems pretty revocable to me. And you looked at it, and it seems less so. Only time and some random judge will...
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    Hello, I am lawyer with a PSA: almost everyone is wrong about the OGL and SRD. Clearing up confusion.

    I would also like to talk about the reason for my original post. I'm not trying to defend WotC or anything--I hope they don't even try to revoke the license. I've just been seeing a lot of videos and stuff going around saying "You don't need the OGL!", or "You can keep using a previous license...
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    Hello, I am lawyer with a PSA: almost everyone is wrong about the OGL and SRD. Clearing up confusion.

    Here's an interesting case on the subject: RPD Holdings, L.L.C. v. Tech Pharm. Servs. (In re Provider Meds, L.L.C.), 907 F.3d 845, 856 (5th Cir. 2018)
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    Hello, I am lawyer with a PSA: almost everyone is wrong about the OGL and SRD. Clearing up confusion.

    I agree, this is all speculative. Anyway, it's been a fun debate with you specifically. I apologize if my last couple of comments were snippy. Only time will tell who is right!
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    Hello, I am lawyer with a PSA: almost everyone is wrong about the OGL and SRD. Clearing up confusion.

    Licenses CAN be irrevocable. That's not my point. My point is that the OGL is not. The presumption against irrevocability is so strong that courts generally do not hold a license irrevocable unless it says "irrevocable." The OGL doesn't say "irrevocable." Period. End. That's all most courts...
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    Hello, I am lawyer with a PSA: almost everyone is wrong about the OGL and SRD. Clearing up confusion.

    :oops: It doesn't seem like everyone knows that... No, read them yourself if you care. I look forward to any citations you can provide to support your own arguments. I really do recommend that article if you can access it.
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    Hello, I am lawyer with a PSA: almost everyone is wrong about the OGL and SRD. Clearing up confusion.

    I have already provided many citations throughout my arguments. But anyway, here are more: Here's a quote from a fabulous article on the subject that really drives my point home: "The contract theory of license also creates obstacles and confusion in other contexts. Some copyright owners - as...
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    Hello, I am lawyer with a PSA: almost everyone is wrong about the OGL and SRD. Clearing up confusion.

    I see people saying that "perpetual" is ambiguous or depends on the context. This is not the case in American licensing law; "perpetual" has a very specific, standard, boilerplate meaning, and irrevocable is absolutely distinct. Here is an example: an agreement between GlassHouse and Dell (link...
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    Hello, I am lawyer with a PSA: almost everyone is wrong about the OGL and SRD. Clearing up confusion.

    I see what you mean, and I think your interpretation is reasonable. I just don't think it'll be the winning one, if it ever gets to court. The lack of the word "irrevocable" really cinches it for me. Licenses with no duration specified are often considered to be revocable at will (not in some...
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    Hello, I am lawyer with a PSA: almost everyone is wrong about the OGL and SRD. Clearing up confusion.

    This is a common misconception: "perpetual" does not mean "irrevocable." "Perpetual" means it has no expiration date (as opposed to a license that is only good for five years, for instance), but even a perpetual license can be revoked. And though WotC gave Paizo permission to sublicense the...
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    Hello, I am lawyer with a PSA: almost everyone is wrong about the OGL and SRD. Clearing up confusion.

    Update: if this gizmodo article is to be believed, it looks like they are going to try and revoke the old license. I also want to clarify, that I'm pro-open source stuff. I just think the foundations are shakier than people think. I hope WotC does not revoke it! And if they do, well, we'll just...
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    Hello, I am lawyer with a PSA: almost everyone is wrong about the OGL and SRD. Clearing up confusion.

    Now there's an interesting case! I just read it. I believe it is relevant, but does not quite hit the mark. In that case, the licensor sued the licensee for breaching the license, or publishing outside the scope of the license. That case is about publications before the license is revoked. Their...
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