Attribution and Licenses
Wednesday, March 23, 2016 - 09:20
I have checked the license faq, about, read parts, and, STILL don't know what to do. Some are pretty straight forward like the cc-by, cc-sa, cc-sa-nc. But ths GPL is just throwing me.
Just to clarify. I would like to use multpiple art pieces licensed under various GPLs. Granted I'm fine with open source. I learn from it. But this is a closed commercial game project.
If I use the GPL pieces do I:
Have to have the game completely open source?
Do I need to release the game under the same license as the art?
Do I need to include the licenses in the game download or provide ease of access to said licesnses?
Need to inform the end user of the license of the art used?
Honestly I have no idea what to do about this.
Is there art you want to use where GPL is the only license offered? If an upload here on OpenGameArt shows multiple licenses, you can accept the terms of any one license shown. You don't have to fulfill every license shown.
Usually GPL art comes from GPL games, and is safest to put into other GPL games. GPL is a code license, not an art license, so there aren't clear answers in other situations.
If you treat it similarly to CC-SA, you will probably be okay. If in doubt, especially if doing something commercial or on a large scale, ask the original artist.
You may want to include art sources (e.g. original textures, or gimp/blender files, or unmixed audio tracks) to get closer to the spirit of the GPL.
That seems fair.
But GPL states specifically that it can be applied to other media like art and music. I'm just worried that the game may be considered a "derivitive" work from a piece of art because it includes the piece of art but I'm not sure whether or not that's the case here. And if it IS the case, that means the GPL rules would apply, and I'd have to open source the project.
If I were you, I would not use any GPL assets in a closed-source commercial game. Best to contact the artist directly and work out more specific terms if possible. Even if there are legal ways to do it, I suspect some people who select this license are specifically intending that they only be used in GPL-licensed games. Even if that isn't a legally-enforceable expectation, it's never good to be seen as working against an artist's intentions.
All righty. Thanks for clearing that up folks.
@xhunterko:
Know I'm a bit late here, but I have been working on a re-write of the site guidelines and FAQ starting with the license section.
http://opengameart.org/forumtopic/site-faqsubmission-guidelines-updatesc...
It's kind a long thread at this point, but if you scroll all the way to the bottom you'll find my effort at clarifying the GPL section of the FAQ, be great to have your feedback on it. The conclusion is pretty much on point with what clint and redshrike had to say, but I'd be curious to know if the text would have helped claridy things for you earlier?
https://withthelove.itch.io/
@capbros
I think so. It tells me at least that I think I am licensing my tent sprite correctly, cc-0, for me personally, as well as adding the other licenses to it. The tent sprite, made from a tile set that includes a cc-by and a gpl, is derivative work, not the game, the tent sprite is being used in.
And it just further illustrates why I need an art budget.