WotC Unveils Draft of New Open Gaming License

As promised earlier this week, WotC has posted the draft OGL v.1.2 license for the community to see.

A survey will be going live tomorrow for feedback.

Starting the OGL ‘Playtest’

In this article, you can review a draft of OGL 1.2, submit feedback via survey, and learn about a Creative Commons license that puts D&D's core mech...

www.dndbeyond.com

The current iteration contains clauses which prohibit offensive content, applies only to TTRPG books and PDFs, no right of ownership going to WotC, and an optional creator content badge for your products.

One important element, the ability for WotC to change the license at-will has also been addressed, allowing the only two specific changes they can make -- how you cite WotC in your work, and contact details.

This license will be irrevocable.

The OGL v1.0a is still being 'de-authorized'.

 

[Haplo781]

Yeah no thanks.

May I ask what your issue is with this proposal?

 

[Aspirinsmurf]

I think maybe you should reconsider your statement.

Why? If we're all milking from the same cow in the village, I can't just take it and claim it for just myself. That's theft.

 

[Matt Thomason]

section 5 is better "You can make your Content available under any terms you choose but you may not change the terms under which we make Our Licensed Content available."

Yeah. I get that I can still use any other license I wish, it'd just be a lot neater to have a OGL 1.0a Section 15 to add mine to that copy of the 1.2 in there than have to include my own license page

(and still leaves the issue of how to combine legacy 1.0a content in there, which we really must get a definitive answer to)

 

[mamba]

I'm curious - did you notice the "WOTC can revoke this license at any time for any reason and you give up your right to object in any way" language? This, as written, seems worse than the leaked OGLv1.1 to me.

can you cite that? Is that just the 'we can revoke objectionable content' bit ?

 

[Ruin Explorer]

Why? If we're all milking from the same cow in the village, I can't just take it and claim it for just myself. That's theft.

Because you can also milk it and claim the same IP Disney does, by and large - that's why every Disney fairy-tale-based movie is followed by a number of low-to-medium grade imitators.

 

[GMforPowergamers]

Your reaction here kind of looks like this to me, to be honest:

Hasbro: "Give up your family, or else...!".
You: "No."
Hasbro: "Give us your house then?"
You: "Okay."

You didn't have to accept anything from them at all, as far as I can tell.

Your right I don't have to accept anything at all... to me it looks more like

Hasbro: We want to shut down a bunch of people in the next week and are giving minor things for it, lso we want to apply unfair (oh man ;m tired, I can't think of the word without google) Royalties
Me: I don't like this, I am going to spend the next few days showing how unreasnable the royalties are and saying I don't like this... but I have to admit 1 or 2 of those minor things look good.
Hasbro: we did away with the royalties and extended the week to six months
me: six months still an't great, but I am super Happy with no royalties, and look at that you kept the minor things I liked
Hasbro: here is our next offer and it's more use but of less stuff and still no royalties, and if companies wish they will have MUCH more the 6 months... oh and keeping the minor things
me: okay look not bad even if not what I would have drafted
@Aspirinsmurf "Can't you see how this is like killing your family or stealing your house"
me: no... no and I think if you have to talk about killing my family you are WAY over blowing this.

 

[GMforPowergamers]

you're accepting bait. if you're fine with that, it's on you, but it's still bait.

so just to be clear... if someone excepts something you don't like you think they are dumb and walking into a trap... gottcha

 

[Langy]

I mean, who would you suggest?

WotC are clearly incompetent when it comes to this stuff. They can't spot blatant racism in their own material. They reject mild anti-capitalist sentiment as "hateful conduct". They're a corporation so sooner or later they're going to freak out about some LGBTQ+ issue.

So who do you reckon?

Define terms like 'harmful', 'hateful', etc. Remove the "you cannot appeal any of our decisions" clause and add in a clause about how if you appeal and win WOTC will pay all legal fees and if you appeal and fail you will pay all legal fees. Potentially also include a standard arbitration clause. Include an explicit judicial system that this will be done under (probably Washington state, like the rest of the OGL).

Also add in timeline requirements (can't terminate the license 10 years after publication) and remove the author behavior requirement, so that it's all about the published content.

I'm fine with WOTC making the initial determination, but it shouldn't be unappealable so that if WOTC does attempt to use it for nefarious purposes they can be pushed back on.

EDIT: Forgot to add in that they also need to define some terms. Added it in.

 

[rcade]

i had things i wanted, thing i dont care about, and things i dont want...but this appears to be in the middle.

I mean it appears open to me.

There's no such thing as an open license that can be revoked at any time by an authority based on its own judgment -- which no one can even challenge in court. That's a closed license completely stacked in one party's favor. Putting "Open" in the name of that license is a joke.

 

[Aspirinsmurf]

Your right I don't have to accept anything at all... to me it looks more like

Hasbro: We want to shut down a bunch of people in the next week and are giving minor things for it, lso we want to apply unfair (oh man ;m tired, I can't think of the word without google) Royalties
Me: I don't like this, I am going to spend the next few days showing how unreasnable the royalties are and saying I don't like this... but I have to admit 1 or 2 of those minor things look good.
Hasbro: we did away with the royalties and extended the week to six months
me: six months still an't great, but I am super Happy with no royalties, and look at that you kept the minor things I liked
Hasbro: here is our next offer and it's more use but of less stuff and still no royalties, and if companies wish they will have MUCH more the 6 months... oh and keeping the minor things
me: okay look not bad even if not what I would have drafted
@Aspirinsmurf "Can't you see how this is like killing your family or stealing your house"
me: no... no and I think if you have to talk about killing my family you are WAY over blowing this.

What do you actually gain from this new license as proposed, in your estimation? That you didn’t have before, I mean?