[Bf-committers] GPL exception license for Blender Player.

[Erwin Coumans]

Blender Foundation cannot change the license,
because BF doesn't own the copyright of all Blender/BGE source code.

2009/10/19 Sinan Hassani <[email redacted]> wrote:
> Contributers to OGRE have to sign a contributer agreement which I think
> allows for this kind of change.

Exactly, contributors to OGRE share ownership/copyright with Torus
Knot Software,
so TKS owns the (shared) copyright. This allows them to change from GPL to MIT.
See http://www.ogre3d.org/developers/submit-patch

Blender Game Engine is a nice for prototyping.
GameKit is a better choice if you want to sell a game without sharing
the source code/assets,
or work under with partners or on consoles under Non Disclosure Agreements.

GameKit will re-use existing open source MIT/BSD/Zlib components for
graphics, animation, IK, sound,
etc. so one main target will be converting the logic bricks.
It would be nice to add some easy switch between BGE and external game
engine such as GameKit,
that saves the .blend and spawns the external game engine.

Once GameKit gets more mature, it would be nice to be included in the
Blender 2.5 distribution.
I'll get in touch with Blender Foundation about distribution, if/when
we get to this point.

Thanks,
Erwin



2009/10/19 Ton Roosendaal <ton at blender.org>:
> Hi,
>
>> it also means that the
>> BGE is not distinct and probably couldn't be licensed separately from
>> Blender.
>
> That's correct. More clear; the engine uses code shared with the 3d
> tool side. Separating it is not simple. We have had many relicensing
> discussions before, and the consensis (and official Foundation stance)
> is to stick to GPL. Blender is first a tool, not a developer API.
>
> If anyone wants to get into business using Blender (as developer) and
> has troubles finding ways to conduct this within the GPL, just contact
> me personally for some consultancy :)
>
> -Ton-
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Ton Roosendaal  Blender Foundation   ton at blender.org    www.blender.org
> Blender Institute   Entrepotdok 57A  1018AD Amsterdam   The Netherlands
>
> On 19 Oct, 2009, at 1:53, Mitchell Stokes wrote:
>
>> I'm curious as to if there is even a method of finding out who
>> contributed to the BGE? I think that would be the most difficult part,
>> asking is simply an email away. However...the BGE has been using more
>> and more of Blender's code, and become less separate. While this helps
>> with development (such as NeXyon's sound work), it also means that the
>> BGE is not distinct and probably couldn't be licensed separately from
>> Blender.
>>
>> --Mitchell Stokes (Moguri)
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>
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