Merci Loris pour l'article de l'EFF qui est excellent.
J'invite tout le monde à le lire, particulièrement le passage sur les ce qui copyrightable et ce qui ne l'est pas ...
When describing a noncopyrightable game mechanic, I might do it in a dry, noncopyrightable way, or I might do it in a creative, copyrightable way.
(...)
However, if other game elements trigger when spirits are present, or if someone says a rhyme, or based on other fictional elements described here, then the uncopyrightable game system might “merge” with the text here so that it wouldn’t be infringement for someone to reproduce this text entirely. Courts are essentially interested in whether the uncopyrightable elements of the work remain available for the public to use, or if the copyright owner is effectively monopolizing them because there simply aren’t many different ways to describe the uncopyrightable ideas or system.
(...)
The exact lines of copyrightability are going to vary from game to game and even page to page. For now, it suffices to say that there is a lot of text in a roleplaying game that can be shared without infringing copyright, and there’s also text that will have copyright attached to it.
... cette remarque très pertinente sur la license
actuelle de l'OGL (soit la 1.0a) :
For most users, accepting this license almost certainly means you have fewer rights to use elements of Dungeons and Dragons than you would otherwise. For example, absent this agreement, you have a legal right to create a work using noncopyrightable elements of D&D or making fair use of copyrightable elements and to say that that work is compatible with Dungeons and Dragons. In many contexts you also have the right to use the logo to name the game (something called “nominative fair use” in trademark law). You can certainly use some of the language, concepts, themes, descriptions, and so forth. Accepting this license almost certainly means signing away rights to use these elements. Like Sauron’s rings of power, the gift of the OGL came with strings attached.
The primary benefit is that you know under what terms Wizards of the Coast will choose not to sue you, so you can avoid having to prove your fair use rights or engage in an expensive legal battle over copyrightability in court.
J'ai plusieurs fois eu cette discussion ici-même, sur l'absurdité d'utiliser la 1.0a dans des jeux qui n'ont absolument aucun intérêt à le faire (si tant est que cette licence ait un intérêt à part ne rien risquer, et encore on voit où ça mène, sur le plan légal), notamment la situation ubuesque où l'on se retrouve interdit de citer le nom D&D dans un jeu qui n'a qu'un rapport lointain avec ce dernier sur le plan des mécaniques sous prétexte qu'il est sous OGL 1.0a ...
Pour faire court : un SRD (un descriptif technique de mécaniques de jeu de rôle), quel qu'il soit, est libre de droit et peut être utilisé par tout un chacun avec la licence de son choix, car ces mécaniques ne sont ni brevetables et ni copyrightables, et si le texte est purement technique et descriptif, ce texte ne l'est pas plus.
Ce que l'EFF résume ainsi :
For someone who wants to make a game that is similar mechanically to Dungeons and Dragons, and even announce that the game is compatible with Dungeons and Dragons, it has always been more advantageous as a matter of law to ignore the OGL. Practicality may dictate a different result when up against the legal team of a large corporation, but if the terms of the OGL are revoked and the new OGL proves even more onerous, that might change the calculus for creators going forward.
Ce avec quoi je suis entièrement d'accord.
C'est une pratique courante en informatique de créer un logiciel libre fonctionnellement parfaitement compatible avec un logiciel propriétaire, et indiquer l'être, sans que cela ne pose le moindre problème.
Je trouve également ce passage intéressant à se rappeler :
What Wizards of the Coast can’t do is revoke the license, yet continue to hold users to the restrictions in the OGL. If they revoke it, then the people who have relied on the license are no longer under an obligation to refrain from using “Product Identity” if they do so in ways that are fair use or otherwise permitted under copyright law.
Et le conseil de fin qui est peut-être la morale de l'histoire :
Open licenses can involve a lot of legalese that makes them hard for a layperson to understand, but if you’re going to rely on one, or if you want others to rely on your own open license, it’s important to use one that is robust and meets your needs. Licenses like Creative Commons and the GNU Public License were written to serve the interests of creative communities, rather than a corporation, and it shows. Beware corporate policies about the acceptable use of their copyrighted materials that wind up being restrictions on your fair use rights rather than the grant of meaningful permission.
P.S. : en réalité, d'un point de vue légal, OSE peut passer dès aujourd'hui en Creative Commons, Role n' Play pareil, Pathfinder et, encore plus, Pathfinder 2, sans difficultés.