May I create a new license based on the ODbL-1.0?

Meta
1

Hi, I spend a several days investigating several free software, content, database licenses that could probably suit my objectives, and I believe that the ODbL is the closest to what I have in mind. However, I suspect that my end-users would find it difficult to comply with section 4.3, since my end-users might seek to utilize their Works Produced in real-time within a persistent virtual space. It would be rather annoying if the license were to force them to carry a sign or wear a watermark.

I’m wondering if it would be fine to create a license of my own using the ODbL text as a base, toning down section 4.3 in order to permit for less visible means of providing attribution (e.g. through metadata). Mozilla and the GNU project permit others to craft their own licenses based on their existing licenses, so I’m wondering if the Open Knowledge Foundation permits the same.

2

Creating new licenses is generally discouraged because it causes data licensed under those terms to be incompatible for reuse with existing licenses. Data users will often need to combine data from different sources, and that might not be legally possible depending on the licenses of each dataset.

Nowadays the ODbL is considered outdated. For licensing new data, if you’d like to exempt data users from any obligation to do attribution (and that is advisable in order to make reuse easier), it’s best to use Creative Commons Zero 1.0 Universal. That license is newer and has been crafted also with data in mind.

2 Likes