Subject: Re: [bitcoin-dev] Possible change to the MIT license

From: Bedri Ozgur Guler <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 13 Feb 2018 18:47:09 +0300

Hello,
The use of name Bitcoin cannot be avoided due to it's nature of being a
Protocol. Prohibition of usage of it as a "brand name" is just like
prohibiting the word "Linux", which is the name of the kernel, being used
as a brand name or part of a brand name. If that had happened, systems
based on Linux kernel couldn't have used Linux word in their brands. The
licence in the Linux example is GPL but it does not really differ so much.
Making a protocol name a Trademark(TM) name and prohibiting it's use may
solve some confusions and bad reputation causing actions but it also
prohibits the protocol to be used widely so damages the credibility of the
protocol itself which was born to be an independent, freedom-based,
government-free, boundaries-free etc. approach to the current corrupted
monetary system.

If precautions should be taken to control the usage of Bitcoin word in
various positions and cases, it should be done in such a way that it should
not contradict with the philosophy of the Bitcoin itself. Social
/marketing-based approaches proposed by Jameson Lopp will be more logical
and freedom based. Trademarking and in some sense Cartel-ing the Bitcoin
Protocol who arose against trademarks and cartels on "money" will destroy
it's own roots and birth-right of existence in my opinion.

Bedri Özgür Güler

On Tue, Feb 13, 2018 at 6:24 PM, Jameson Lopp via bitcoin-dev <
[email-masked]> wrote:

> If I'm understanding the problem being stated correctly:
>
> "Bitcoin is under a branding attack by fork coins."
>
> The proposed solution is to disincentivize fork coins from using the word
> Bitcoin by altering the license terms. I'm not a lawyer, but it seems to me
> that the words of the license are basically useless unless there is an
> entity that intends to make use of court systems to threaten noncompliant
> projects into submission.
>
> In my opinion, the perceived attack on Bitcoin here is social /
> marketing-based, thus it makes sense that any defense against said attack
> should also be social / marketing-based. I don't think that Bitcoin should
> be reliant upon courts or governments to defend itself against attacks of
> any form.
>
> On Tue, Feb 13, 2018 at 9:25 AM, Natanael via bitcoin-dev <
> [email-masked]> wrote:
>
>>
>>
>> Den 13 feb. 2018 15:07 skrev "JOSE FEMENIAS CAÑUELO via bitcoin-dev" <
>> [email-masked]>:
>>
>> ***
>> NO PART OF THIS SOFTWARE CAN BE INCLUDED IN ANY OTHER PROJECT THAT USES
>> THE NAME BITCOIN AS PART OF ITS NAME AND/OR ITS MARKETING MATERIAL UNLESS
>> THE SOFTWARE PRODUCED BY THAT PROJECT IS FULLY COMPATIBLE WITH THE BITCOIN
>> (CORE) BLOCKCHAIN
>> ***
>>
>>
>> That's better solved with trademarks. (whoever would be the trademark
>> holder - Satoshi?)
>>
>> This would also prohibit any reimplementation that's not formally
>> verified to be perfectly compatible from using the name.
>>
>> It also adds legal uncertainty.
>>
>> Another major problem is that it neither affects anybody forking older
>> versions of Bitcoin, not people using existing independent blockchain
>> implementations and renaming them Bitcoin-Whatsoever.
>>
>> And what happens when an old version is technically incompatible with a
>> future version by the Core team due to not understanding various new
>> softforks? Which version wins the right to the name?
>>
>> Also, being unable to even mention Bitcoin is overkill.
>>
>> The software license also don't affect the blockchain data.
>>
>>
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>>
>
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