Re: Request for clarification on HTML 5 publication status (ISSUE-19)

On Nov 29, 2007, at 6:40 AM, Dan Connolly wrote:

>
>
> On Thu, 2007-11-29 at 09:46 +0000, Ian Hickson wrote:
>> On Wed, 28 Nov 2007, Dan Connolly wrote:
>>>
>>> Before we get to the business of addressing objections to  
>>> publishing, we
>>> have to establish a critical mass of support for publishing.
>>
>> It would seem we have that -- 43 people have indicated explicitly  
>> that
>> they agree that we should publish a draft, in a vote with 53  
>> ballots cast.
>> That's over 80% explicitly positive.
>
> I don't think those 43 people represent a critical mass of the
> relevant constituency; namely: the W3C member organizations that take
> on patent licensing obligations as of 1st WD.

1st WD does not trigger patent licensing obligations. It is the  
starting point for a review period at the end of which licensing  
obligations may take hold, if the member does not exclude claims or  
leave the working group. It is not possible to fully do this review  
without a designation of what the FPWD draft will be, even if we do  
not immediately publish it, since the patent obligations are based  
solely on the actual content of the FPWD, not any other documents such  
as the charter or earlier Editor's Drafts. Publishing FPWD also begins  
the widely and directly broadcast Call for Exclusion which will  
certainly get the attention of Member organizations more than a survey.

> I intend to consult with the Hypertext CG and W3C management about
> how much of a delay is advisable/acceptable. I suppose I'll use
> tracker to keep me accountable...
>
>
> ACTION-28 Consult with the Hypertext CG and W3C management about how
> much time W3C member organizations should be allowed to study the  
> patent
> implications of an HTML 5 spec 1st WD
> http://www.w3.org/html/wg/tracker/actions/28

Thanks for taking on this action.

Regards,
Maciej

Received on Thursday, 29 November 2007 22:41:20 UTC