[Asterisk-Users] Wiki TOS - worrying for an open source project?

[Andrew Kohlsmith]

> I've made a couple of small contributions to the wiki but recently I
> read the Terms of service, they are pretty draconian:

>      Download (other than page caching), or modify this site.
>
>      Reproduce, duplicate, copy, sell, resell, visit or use for other
> commercial purposes this site or any portion thereof.
>
>      Use frames or framing techniques to enclose this site or any
> portion thereof for commercial purposes.
>
>      Use meta tags or other 'hidden text'  utilizing voip-info.org's
> name or trademarks.
>
> Any unauthorized use terminates the permission or license granted by
> voip-info.org.

Sounds pretty damned decent to me so far...

> When you enter content into any area of this web site, unless stated
> otherwise, you grant voip-info.org and its affiliates a nonexclusive,
> royalty-free, perpetual, irrevocable, and fully sublicensable right to
> use, reproduce, modify, adapt, publish, translate, create derivative
> works from, distribute, and display such content throughout the world in
> any media.

This is generally implied with any forum or newsgroup -- It's just restating 
what the above list said: you can't post publically and then turn around and 
sue voip-info.org for doing something with that information.  

You will note it said "NONexclusive ... right" -- they're not saying the 
information belongs to them, they are saying that the information is in the 
public domain.

> What worries me most is that the current terms seem crafted so as to
> ensure that should the people who run voip-info ever decide to remove
> content, or stop hosting the wiki, it couldn't be mirrored anywhere else.

Untrue.  Their terms about relinking or republishing are for COMMERCIAL use, 
unless I'm misreading something here.

Regards,
Andrew