An important part of our new private sector partnership with Vitalliance is making sure our intellectual property (IP) parameters would work smoothly with our growing community and with the new partner’s proprietary software. We understood that choosing how to manage IP protects software investments, ensures contributors receive appropriate attribution and creates a clear basis for multiple collaborators to do more together than they can alone.
Therefore, we set out to define OpenLMIS’ IP parameters by investigating the five elements of software IP – inbound contributions, upstream dependencies, copyright, license and trademark.
We documented our process in a case study to share with other Global Goods interested in examining and choosing IP parameters for their software. The case study outlines our criteria for decision-making, explains potential IP options and shares the final decisions we made for each element for OpenLMIS.
Through this review process, and selection of IP parameters, we made important decisions that will help OpenLMIS grow as an Open Source Global Good with a thriving implementer Community, and enable Vitalliance to offer additional features and services. By thoughtfully managing OpenLMIS IP we are confident that OpenLMIS is well-positioned to be a sustainable Global Good that continues to thrive for years to come.