Re: <nettime> My Lawyer is an Artist

[Heiko Recktenwald <heikorecktenwald@googlemail.com>]

Dear Florian,

Am 16.11.2011 19:07, schrieb Florian Cramer:

>>> It is in fact a crucial stage. By doing so, the author allows her or
>>> his work to interface with a system inside which it can be freely
>>> exchanged, modified and distributed. The freedom of this work is not
>>> to be misunderstood with gratis and free of charge access to the
>>> creation, it means that once such a freedom is granted to a work of
>>> art, anyone is free to redistribute and modify it according to the
>>> rules provided by its license. There is no turning back once this
>>> choice is made public.
>>>
>> This is IMHO pure nonsense. IMHO nothing can stop a pruducer from
>> changing his mind for the future. Why should it be the way you
>> imagine? What should be the reason for such a limitation ("no turning
>> back") of his freedom? Can you show me, sorry, ONE case where a court
>> has decided in your way?
>>
> A producer/copyright owner can change their mind about the license of
> a work in the future, but cannot retroactively change a license
> granted in the past if it was an indefinite license. 

This is a beautifull idea but is it true?

What is "a licence"?

Is it a thing that you get?  No, it is a set of rules on what you can do
with something else, some code or whatever.

And all rules have to be interpreted. Transfers of the code accordiing
to the words of the licence have to be valid.

I would make a difference between the relation between creator A and
user B and the relation between user B and C.

Even if creator A would OWE something to user B, he would owe nothing to
user C.

But I doubt that there is any DUTY of creator A against anybody in those
licences in any legal sense and think that there is nothing  but a poem
and actual consent on creator A, that can change.

Best, H.

<...>


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