Copyright Policy

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The purposes of this GA4GH Copyright Policy (“Policy”) are to:

• encourage open and collaborative participation of institutions and individuals in standards development under clear expectations and in conformity with the GA4GH mission;
• ensure that GA4GH has clear rights under copyright law to adapt and utilise contributions, incorporate them into GA4GH products, and distribute those standards widely;
• encourage access and uptake of GA4GH products through clear licensing;
• maintain the integrity and compatibility of GA4GH standards;
• encourage users to extend GA4GH standards where appropriate and contribute improvements back to GA4GH;
• recognise both organisations and individuals for their contributions to standards development; and
• ensure consistency and coherence between this Copyright Policy and other GA4GH IP policies (i.e. trademark, patent).

1. Apache License — the Apache 2.0 License, a copy of which is attached hereto as Appendix A.
2. Contribution — all items submitted to GA4GH that are proposed for inclusion in a GA4GH Work Product, whether submitted in writing or electronically, in person, or through an electronic conference, mailing list, or other forum or medium maintained or overseen by the GA4GH. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing Contributions include written text, illustrations, diagrams, software code, data, and media of all kinds.
3. Contributor — an individual submitting a contribution to the GA4GH in their individual capacity or as a representative of an Organisational Member.
4. Copyright Holder — the person or entity holding the right to grant the copyright licenses described in this Policy with respect to a particular Contribution. By way of example, an Individual Contributor’s employer, principal, sponsor, or assignee who has acquired the copyright in or to a Contribution created by such Contributor, and any joint owners of copyright in such Contributions with such Contributor, shall be considered the Copyright Holder(s) with respect to such Contribution.
5. Derivative Work — a work based upon, or which recasts, transforms, or adapts, one or more preexisting works.
6. Encumbrance — any lien, obligation, restriction, or covenant, whether arising through contract, property, debt, judicial order, or other legal mechanism, that could limit the scope or exercise of a license granted or purported to be granted hereunder.
7. GA4GH — the association currently known as the “Global Alliance for Genomic Health” and any successor entity or entities thereof.
8. GA4GH Mark — those trademarks and service marks identified in the GA4GH Trademark Policy.
9. Host Institution — as defined in the Constitution of GA4GH.
10. Organisational Member — as defined in the Constitution of GA4GH.
11. Open Source Software License — a license approved by the Open Source Initiative.
12. Released Document — any standard, specification, ontology, documentation, or other textual document other than Released Software that is made available by GA4GH for public use.
13. Released Software — any software program, module, application, macro, test suite, or other code that is made available by GA4GH for public use, including all associated documentation, release notes, and data.
14. User — any person or entity that uses or desires to use any Released Document or Released Software under the terms set forth herein.
15. Work Product — all materials released by or developed under the auspices of GA4GH including, without limitation, Released Documents and Released Software.
16. Work Stream Leader — the person or persons designated as the leader(s) of a particular GA4GH activity, such as leading the development of a Work Product, pursuant to the Constitution of GA4GH.

1. Each Contributor grants to the GA4GH, or shall ensure that the Copyright Holder grants to GA4GH, a perpetual, irrevocable, non-exclusive, royalty-free, sub-licensable, worldwide license to copy, publish, distribute, modify, and create Derivative Works of each Contribution made by such Contributor under all copyrights and related rights therein (including moral rights and rights of authors).
2. To the extent legally permitted, Contributor irrevocably waives any and all moral rights, droit moral, rights of authors, and similar rights with respect to each Contribution.
3. Each Contributor represents and warrants to the GA4GH that, to the best of his or her knowledge, each Contribution made by such Contributor is, at the time of contribution, free from any and all Encumbrances or, if any such Encumbrance exists, it has been disclosed in writing to the relevant Work Stream leader concurrently with its contribution to the GA4GH.
4. For the avoidance of doubt, each Contributor acknowledges, on his or her own behalf and on behalf of any relevant Copyright Owner, that any Work Product that includes all or a portion of a Contribution is considered a Derivative Work of that Contribution for all purposes.

1. License for product development — GA4GH grants to each participant in GA4GH activities, for the duration of such participation, solely to the extent of the GA4GH’s legal right to do so, a non-exclusive, royalty-free, non-sublicensable, worldwide license to copy, distribute, modify, and create Derivative Works of each Contribution and Work Product, under all copyrights and related rights therein, solely for purposes of developing, modifying, and maintaining Work Product as part of authorised GA4GH activity.
2. For the avoidance of doubt, nothing in Section 4a above shall limit, condition, or restrict a Contributor’s ability to exploit its own Contributions in any manner whatsoever.

1. Grant of License: GA4GH grants to each User, solely to the extent of GA4GH’s legal right to do so, a perpetual, non-exclusive, royalty-free, non-sublicensable, worldwide licence to copy, distribute, and create Derivative Works of each Released Document, under all copyrights and related rights therein (including moral rights and rights of authors), for any purpose.
2. Attribution and Notice: Each User agrees to include in every reproduction, in whole or in substantial part, of any Released Document the following notifications: (1) the text “Created by GA4GH” and (2) any copyright notice that is included in the Released Document and (3) the text “Use and reproduction of this document is subject to the terms of the GA4GH Copyright Policy, a current version of which may be found at http://www.ga4gh.org/copyright-policy.” Such text shall be included in one or more prominent locations within and/or associated with the relevant document or item (e.g. in the header file, metadata).
3. Official Versions: Each User agrees that it shall have no right to distribute, reproduce, or display any modified, altered, abridged, translated, or derivative version of any Released Document under or in connection with any GA4GH Mark, and acknowledges that the only documents that may be distributed, reproduced, or displayed under or in connection
   with the GA4GH Marks, under the terms of the GA4GH Trademark Policy, are unaltered versions of the English-language Released Documents approved by GA4GH.

1. Apache License: Subject to Section 6b below, GA4GH grants to each User, solely to the extent of GA4GH’s legal right to do so, a license with respect to Released Software on the terms of the Apache License. Each User agrees to comply with all terms of such Apache License.
2. Alternative Open Source Software License: In some cases, GA4GH may determine that an Open Source Software License other than the Apache License is preferable for a particular item of Released Software (e.g. particular test suites). If so, such determination will be recorded in the official records of the relevant Work Stream and clearly communicated to Contributors. The selected Open Source Software License terms shall be appended to the relevant Released Software release notes or otherwise made available in a prominent location.

Each Contributor and User acknowledges that GA4GH is and shall remain the owner of the copyright in any and all Work Product, including Released Documents and Released Software, and including the copyright in the compilation and collective work, subject in all cases to the Contributor’s retention of ownership of the copyright in its original Contribution.

The following terms apply to all Work Product released or made available by GA4GH: ALL WORK PRODUCT RELEASED OR PROVIDED BY GA4GH AND THE INFORMATION CONTAINED THEREIN IS PROVIDED ON AN “AS IS” BASIS AND GA4GH, ITS EMPLOYEES, CONTRACTORS, OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, AND HOST INSTITUTIONS, THE CONTRIBUTORS, AND THE COPYRIGHT OWNER(S) (COLLECTIVELY, THE “PROVIDERS”), DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO ANY WARRANTY THAT THE USE OF SUCH DOCUMENT AND INFORMATION WILL NOT CAUSE INJURY, INFRINGE ANY THIRD PARTY RIGHTS, OR VIOLATE ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. EACH USER AND CONTRIBUTOR AGREES, AS A CONDITION TO THE USE OF ANY WORK PRODUCT AND PARTICIPATION IN GA4GH ACTIVITIES, THAT TO THE GREATEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, THE PROVIDERS HEREBY EXCLUDE ALL LIABILITY WHATSOEVER WITH RESPECT TO THE PROVISION, DISTRIBUTION, OR USE OF ANY WORK PRODUCT OR INFORMATION, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE, AND EXEMPLARY DAMAGES.

The above shall be in addition to any disclaimers or limitations contained in the Apache License or other applicable Open Source Software License applicable to Released Software.

The GA4GH staff or its delegate is responsible for the administration of this Policy. Questions relating to this Policy should be sent to info [at] www.ga4gh.org.

This Policy may be amended in accordance with the procedures for policy amendment set forth in the Constitution of GA4GH, and such policy amendments shall take effect as set forth therein.

Apache License
Version 2.0, January 2004
https://www.apache.org/licenses/

TERMS AND CONDITIONS FOR USE, REPRODUCTION, AND DISTRIBUTION

1. Definitions.

2. Grant of Copyright License. Subject to the terms and conditions of this License, each Contributor hereby grants to You a perpetual, worldwide, non-exclusive, no-charge, royalty-free, irrevocable copyright license to reproduce, prepare Derivative Works of, publicly display, publicly perform, sublicense, and distribute the Work and such Derivative Works in Source or Object form.

3. Grant of Patent License. Subject to the terms and conditions of this License, each Contributor hereby grants to You a perpetual, worldwide, non-exclusive, no-charge, royalty-free, irrevocable (except as stated in this section) patent license to make, have made, use, offer to sell, sell, import, and otherwise transfer the Work, where such license applies only to those patent claims licensable by such Contributor that are necessarily infringed by their Contribution(s) alone or by combination of their Contribution(s) with the Work to which such Contribution(s) was submitted. If You institute patent litigation against any entity (including a cross-claim or counterclaim in a lawsuit) alleging that the Work or a Contribution incorporated within the Work constitutes direct or contributory patent infringement, then any patent licenses granted to You under this License for that Work shall terminate as of the date such litigation is filed.

4. Redistribution. You may reproduce and distribute copies of the Work or Derivative Works thereof in any medium, with or without modifications, and in Source or Object form, provided that You meet the following conditions:

1. You must give any other recipients of the Work or Derivative Works a copy of this License; and
2. You must cause any modified files to carry prominent notices stating that You changed the files; and
3. You must retain, in the Source form of any Derivative Works that You distribute, all copyright, patent, trademark, and attribution notices from the Source form of the Work, excluding those notices that do not pertain to any part of the Derivative Works; and
4. if the Work includes a “NOTICE” text file as part of its distribution, then any Derivative Works that You distribute must include a readable copy of the attribution notices contained within such NOTICE file, excluding those notices that do not pertain to any part of the Derivative Works, in at least one of the following places: within a NOTICE text file distributed as part of the Derivative Works; within the Source form or documentation, if provided along with the Derivative Works; or, within a display generated by the Derivative Works, if and wherever such third-party notices normally appear. The contents of the NOTICE file are for informational purposes only and do not modify the License. You may add Your own attribution notices within Derivative Works that You distribute, alongside or as an addendum to the NOTICE text from the Work, provided that such additional attribution notices cannot be construed as modifying the License.You may add Your own copyright statement to Your modifications and may provide additional or different license terms and conditions for use, reproduction, or distribution of Your modifications, or for any such Derivative Works as a whole, provided Your use, reproduction, and distribution of the Work otherwise complies with the conditions stated in this License.

5. Submission of Contributions. Unless You explicitly state otherwise, any Contribution intentionally submitted for inclusion in the Work by You to the Licensor shall be under the terms and conditions of this License, without any additional terms or conditions. Notwithstanding the above, nothing herein shall supersede or modify the terms of any separate license agreement you may have executed with Licensor regarding such Contributions.

6. Trademarks. This License does not grant permission to use the trade names, trademarks, service marks, or product names of the Licensor, except as required for reasonable and customary use in describing the origin of the Work and reproducing the content of the NOTICE file.

7. Disclaimer of Warranty. Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, Licensor provides the Work (and each Contributor provides its Contributions) on an “AS IS” BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied, including, without limitation, any warranties or conditions of TITLE, NON-INFRINGEMENT, MERCHANTABILITY, or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. You are solely responsible for determining the appropriateness of using or redistributing the Work and assume any risks associated with Your exercise of permissions under this License.

8. Limitation of Liability. In no event and under no legal theory, whether in tort (including negligence), contract, or otherwise, unless required by applicable law (such as deliberate and grossly negligent acts) or agreed to in writing, shall any Contributor be liable to You for damages, including any direct, indirect, special, incidental, or consequential damages of any character arising as a result of this License or out of the use or inability to use the Work (including but not limited to damages for loss of goodwill, work stoppage, computer failure or malfunction, or any and all other commercial damages or losses), even if such Contributor has been advised of the possibility of such damages.

9. Accepting Warranty or Additional Liability. While redistributing the Work or Derivative Works thereof, You may choose to offer, and charge a fee for, acceptance of support, warranty, indemnity, or other liability obligations and/or rights consistent with this License. However, in accepting such obligations, You may act only on Your own behalf and on Your sole responsibility, not on behalf of any other Contributor, and only if You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold each Contributor harmless for any liability incurred by, or claims asserted against, such Contributor by reason of your accepting any such warranty or additional liability.

END OF TERMS AND CONDITIONS