CfC: switch to new W3C Patent Policy for the group - deadline 26 November

Hi Second Screen WG participants,

This is call for consensus to switch the group to the new W3C Patent 
Policy [1]. Deadline is 26 November (to be able to meet the deadline to 
actually request the switch!). See below for details. Let me know if you 
have concerns or questions. Silence is considered to be consent.

Details:
As mentioned during TPAC and alluded to in a previous email [2], along 
with the new Process, the W3C has also adopted a new version of its 
Patent Policy, which was reviewed and approved by the Advisory 
Committee. All new groups will operate under the new patent policy. 
Existing groups have an opportunity to request switching to the new 
Patent Policy right away. If they don't, they will continue to operate 
under the previous version of the W3C Patent Policy until they 
re-charter.

The main change is that, under the new patent policy, royalty-free 
commitments apply earlier, at the Candidate Recommendation phase, and 
not only at the Recommendation phase. In non legal terms, the new patent 
policy encourages implementations and usage earlier on.

If the group agrees to switch to the new patent policy, a new charter 
will be issued early December. Only change in that charter will be the 
patent policy. The end date, the scope, the list of deliverables, and 
everything else will remain untouched. The adoption of this new charter 
will be automatic (the new charter will not be sent to the advisory 
committee for review in particular). The only hiccup is that 
participants will have to re-join the WG afterwards.

I note that your respective organizations have already reviewed the new 
Patent Policy and thus should already be fine with it. Also, regardless 
of what the group decides today, it will have to switch to the new 
patent policy next time it re-charters. For the Second Screen WG, that 
would be end of December 2021.

Thanks,
Francois.

[1] https://www.w3.org/Consortium/Patent-Policy-20200915/
[2] 
https://lists.w3.org/Archives/Public/public-secondscreen/2020Oct/0049.html

Received on Wednesday, 18 November 2020 11:07:17 UTC