Donations/contributions across technical committees

[James Bryce Clark <jamie.clark@oasis-open.org>]

     I understand there is a proposed donation of output from the OASIS BTP 
TC into the OASIS WS-CAF TC.   It is possible for one TC to use another's 
work, but not automatically:  it requires (a) contribution and (b) analysis.

     (a) Contribution:  Any work that comes into an OASIS TC must be 
contributed by a member, so that someone is responsible for it. [1]  It's 
up to the contributor to determine that the proposed contribution can be 
made, consistent with any claimed or known limitations.  All OASIS 
contributions come from a specific member who uploads the material to the TC.
     (b) Analysis:  Under our rules, it's OASIS that owns the output 
work.  All of that work is is subject to OASIS' IPR Policy, which gives the 
public *some* specific freely-available rights to use it -- which even 
apply to other OASIS TCs. [2]  But any OASIS work can have claims against 
it, that may limit those uses, now or in the future.  The responsibility 
for disclosing / assuring its IPR availability, in the limited sense our 
policy requires, rests with the person(s) choosing to make the 
contribution.

     Of course, a separate question for any contribution will be whether it 
fits within the recipient TC's charter.  No-one has raised that issue with 
me in this case.

    Regards   JBC

~   James Bryce Clark
~   Director, Standards Development, OASIS
~   jamie.clark@oasis-open.org


[1] http://www.oasis-open.org/who/intellectualproperty.php#definitions 
("contribution")
[2] See the minimum copyright terms from contributors to OASIS, at 
http://www.oasis-open.org/who/intellectualproperty.php#contributions, and 
from OASIS, at 
http://www.oasis-open.org/who/intellectualproperty.php#general; and the 
minimum licensing terms from any contributor with a claim, at 
http://www.oasis-open.org/who/intellectualproperty.php#licensing_req.