The Free Software Foundation (FSF) and the Software Freedom Law
Center (SFLC) today have released the second discussion draft of
the GNU General Public License (GPL) version 3 (GPLv3). This new
draft marks the middle of a year-long public review process
designed to evaluate proposed changes and to finalize a new version
of the GPL.
The GNU GPL is the most widely used free software license
worldwide: almost three quarters of all free software programs
(also known as “Free/Libre and Open Source Software,” or FLOSS) are
distributed under this license. Since the GPL’s last revision more
than 15 years ago, free software development, distribution, and use
have changed tremendously.
Since the release of the initial GPLv3 discussion draft in
January, members of the free software community have submitted
nearly one thousand suggestions for improvement. Many have
continued the discussion at international GPLv3 conferences held in
the United States, Brazil, and Spain. With the help of discussion
committees, the Free Software Foundation and the Software Freedom
Law Center have considered all the issues raised by public
comments. The new draft of GPLv3 contains extensive revisions in
light of these comments.
“We have considered each suggestion with care,” said Eben
Moglen, founder and Chairman of the Software Freedom Law Center,
which represents various free software projects and is assisting
FSF in revising the new license. “By listening to people from
around the world, we are working toward a license that acts
consistently in many different legal systems and in a variety of
situations.”
“The primary purpose of the GNU GPL is to preserve users’
freedom to use, share, and modify free software,” said Richard
Stallman, founder of FSF and original author of the GPL. “We depend
on public review to make the GPL do this job reliably.”
About the Revisions
The new draft clarifies that the license only directly restricts
DRM in the special case in which it is used to prevent people from
sharing or modifying GPLv3-covered software. The clarified DRM
section preserves the spirit of the original GPL, which forbids
adding additional unfree restrictions to free software. GPLv3 does
not prohibit the implementation of DRM features, but prevents them
from being imposed on users in a way that they cannot remove.
Other significant revisions in the new draft include a reworked
license compatibility section, and provisions that specifically
allow GPL-covered programs to be distributed on certain file
sharing networks such as BitTorrent.
Additionally, this release includes the first draft of the GNU
Lesser General Public License (LGPL) version 3. The LGPL license
covers many free software system libraries, including some
published by the Free Software Foundation.
The text of the new GPL and LGPL drafts can be found on the web
at gplv3.fsf.org. The site also
includes audio commentary from Eben Moglen; a rationale document
which describes the changes to the new draft; and further
information about the GPLv3 revision process. As with the first
draft, community members are encouraged to submit comments online
at gplv3.fsf.org.
Throughout the remainder of the process, there will continue to
be international GPLv3 discussion conferences, including one next
month in Bangalore, India. A third discussion draft of GPLv3 is
expected to be released this fall, and the final version will be
released between January and March of 2007.
“Last November, we published a document which outlined the
process for drafting the new GPL,” said Eben Moglen, chair of SFLC.
“As of now, we are still on schedule for a final release in early
2007.”