the Python Foundation

[Mark Tarver]

From the website

The Python Software Foundation (PSF) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit
corporation that
holds the intellectual property rights behind the Python programming
language. We manage the open source licensing for Python version 2.1
and later and own and protect the trademarks associated with Python.

Could somebody explain 'what holding the intellectual property rights'
means in this context and in what sense PSF manages the licensing and
protects the trademarks associated with Python? This is for my
education.

thanks

Mark

 

[Robert Kern]

The Python Software Foundation (PSF) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit
corporation that
holds the intellectual property rights behind the Python programming
language. We manage the open source licensing for Python version 2.1
and later and own and protect the trademarks associated with Python.

Could somebody explain 'what holding the intellectual property rights'
means in this context and in what sense PSF manages the licensing and
protects the trademarks associated with Python? This is for my
education.

The PSF owns the Python language trademark:

http://tess2.uspto.gov/bin/showfield?f=doc&state=4007:oc64of.5.1

Its trademark policy is given in detail here:

http://www.python.org/psf/trademarks/

It also controls the license of the Python interpreter and its surrounding code.
Contributors license their code to the PSF. Contributors keep the copyright to
their code, but they agree to give the PSF the right to distribute it under a
different license if the PSF decides to change licenses. See the Contributor
Agreement:

http://www.python.org/psf/contrib/contrib-form/

I believe they also outright own the copyright to most of the code that was in
the Python 2.1 release and up until this Contributor Agreement was set up. I
could be wrong about that, though.

--
Robert Kern

"I have come to believe that the whole world is an enigma, a harmless enigma
that is made terrible by our own mad attempt to interpret it as though it had
an underlying truth."
-- Umberto Eco

 

[Steve Holden, Chairman, PSF]

The Python Software Foundation (PSF) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit
corporation that
holds the intellectual property rights behind the Python programming
language. We manage the open source licensing for Python version 2.1
and later and own and protect the trademarks associated with Python.

Could somebody explain 'what holding the intellectual property rights'
means in this context and in what sense PSF manages the licensing and
protects the trademarks associated with Python? This is for my
education.

The PSF requires that contributors sign an agreement licensing their
code to us, and allowing us to distribute it under the license of our
choosing (this does not in any way preclude the contributor licensing
the same code to any other party under different terms).

In this way people who use Python can be relatively sure that the code
is untrammeled by claims of copyright or patent by anyone other than the
PSF, and can therefore use it without fear of losing their rights to do
so because of legal action by third parties.

We have also registered the trademark "Python" for use in reference to
computer programming languages, thereby ensuring that we can take action
should some ill-advised individual or organization decide to produce
another language with "Python" in its name which we did not feel
conformed sufficiently strictly to the language definition, for instance.

The PSF has an established policy with regard to the use of its
trademarks, which you can read at

http://www.python.org/psf/trademarks/

regards
Steve

 

[Paul Rubin]

We have also registered the trademark "Python" for use in reference to
computer programming languages, thereby ensuring that we can take action
should some ill-advised individual or organization decide to produce
another language with "Python" in its name

There has been a Lisp compiler called "Python" for many years:

http://portal.acm.org/citation.cfm?id=141471.141558

 

[Rami Chowdhury]

There has been a Lisp compiler called "Python" for many years:

http://portal.acm.org/citation.cfm?id=141471.141558

The FAQ disclaims any connection and claims that Python the Lisp
compiler has been around longer than Python the language...

http://www.cons.org/cmucl/FAQ.html

I was awfully confused the first time I came across SBCL giving me warnings
about Python, though -- proves how well the PSF has safeguarded the name!

 

[Mark Tarver]

The PSF requires that contributors sign an agreement licensing their
code to us, and allowing us to distribute it under the license of our
choosing (this does not in any way preclude the contributor licensing
the same code to any other party under different terms).

In this way people who use Python can be relatively sure that the code
is untrammeled by claims of copyright or patent by anyone other than the
PSF, and can therefore use it without fear of losing their rights to do
so because of legal action by third parties.

We have also registered the trademark "Python" for use in reference to
computer programming languages, thereby ensuring that we can take action
should some ill-advised individual or organization decide to produce
another language with "Python" in its name which we did not feel
conformed sufficiently strictly to the language definition, for instance.

The PSF has an established policy with regard to the use of its
trademarks, which you can read at

 http://www.python.org/psf/trademarks/

regards
 Steve
--
Steve Holden        Chairman, Python Software Foundation
See PyCon Talks from Atlanta 2010  http://pycon.blip.tv/
Holden Web LLC                http://www.holdenweb.com/
UPCOMING EVENTS:        http://holdenweb.eventbrite.com/

Thankyou to all on this thread for this clarification. I may return
and ask some questions if I need further clarification.

Mark