License and source of the styles

[klokan]

I am afraid this repo with GL JSON styles is not 100% legal @manuelroth and @lukasmartinelli.

It does not credit anyhow the original creator of the JSON styles.

I expect these styles are derived from MapBox JSON styles, but it is not clearly visible, and it is not sure from what exact version you have derived these styles (which commit), and what modifications were done (in a clear commit).

MapBox changed / assigned the license on their styles (probably because of OSM2VectorTiles project) and applied it from March 3rd: https://github.com/mapbox/mapbox-gl-styles/blob/master/LICENSE.md
Before this date, the styles are without license in their repo. UPDATE: The styles had probably ISC license - see bellow.

This is exactly why I made the https://github.com/klokantech/osm2vectortiles-gl-styles for OSM2VectorTiles v1 the way it is made. Other people are starting to use and fork your styles so it is dangerous.

This repo should be probably recreated as a fork of the original mapbox repo (https://github.com/mapbox/mapbox-gl-styles) from an exact commit which you have used as the source for your styles.

I may do this work on klokantech/osm2vectortiles-gl-styles repo, once time allows. You can also make a PR with an upgrade to our repo - or as mentioned above, recreate this one.

[lukasmartinelli]

Thanks for noticing.

I added the copyright notice in the README and the license to the repository in ff97a1c and therefore it should fulfil the BSD license requirements from what I understand.

I don't think we violate the BSD3 license by not having the exact commits with the modifications.

This is exactly why I made the https://github.com/klokantech/osm2vectortiles-gl-styles for OSM2VectorTiles v1 the way it is made. Other people are starting to use and fork your styles so it is dangerous.

You probably need to add the LICENSE.md as well from what I understand the license.
klokantech/osm2vectortiles-gl-styles#1

[klokan]

The paragraph

Copyright, database rights, and any other intellectual property or proprietary rights in vector tiles, satellite or aerial imagery, and any other map data and map data offered by Mapbox for use with the Mapbox Open Styles are expressly excluded from this license.

suggests possible new restrictions for reverse engineering done after March 3rd 2016, when this license was applied. Even though, I am not sure into what extent can MapBox claim copyright and database rights on OpenStreetMap licensed with Open Database license (odbl), enforcing share-a-like (http://opendatacommons.org/licenses/odbl/summary/).
They clearly allow people to reuse the JSON styles now.

I am not a lawyer, but everything related to OSM2VectorTiles sounds legal and correct if we always credit correctly. If there is a claim of infringement related to the new style license, we may reverse MapBox work to point done before March 3rd 2016. Licenses cannot be applied retrospectively.

That's why I wanted you to be very precise from what version/commit your styles are derived (before March 3rd or after).

[michaelsteffen]

@klokan - Good to chat by phone just now. And hi, @lukasmartinelli.

@klokan, per our call, I wanted to clarify the licensing situation for Mapbox styles. Basic, Bright and Satellite are open-licensed under the terms here: https://github.com/mapbox/mapbox-gl-styles/blob/master/LICENSE.md. Streets, Dark, Light and other styles are associated with the Mapbox brand, and we only license these (or derivatives) for use with the Mapbox services.

You rightly note that we first licensed our GL styles in May. Before May 3rd, the styles were not licensed, meaning that they were governed by default copyright and trademark laws (like any other unlicensed design and code, Mapbox owns the copyright, trademark and all other rights in the styles). On March 3rd we decided to open source some of the styles - Basic, Bright, and Satellite, under the new license terms you've identified. The Streets, Dark and Light styles continue be licensed only in connection with use of our services (although quite permissively in that context).

@lukasmartinelli, thanks for updating the license file in this repo already.

@klokan, @lukasmartinelli I think the next step is just for you to remove the Streets, Emerald, Dark, Light, and Satellite-Hybrid styles from this repo, https://github.com/klokantech/osm2vectortiles-gl-styles/tree/gh-pages/styles, and the http://osm2vectortiles.org/ site.

[lukasmartinelli]

Thanks for statement @michaelsteffen. You guys from Mapbox rock!

The Streets, Dark and Light styles continue be licensed only in connection with use of our services (although quite permissively in that context).

But using the Light/Dark style together in other projects when the Mapbox API is used somehow is fine? Like when I use the style and add my own data sets over it.

If we use the Mapbox API (like for fonts and glyphs) and use our own vector tile set - we are still allowed to use the Bright and Dark styles? Or where is the line drawn - if you use the style exclusively together with other Mapbox vector tile sources?
I know I am nitpicking here - sorry.

[michaelsteffen]

Hi @lukasmartinelli -

But using the Light/Dark style together in other projects when the Mapbox API is used somehow is fine? Like when I use the style and add my own data sets over it.

Yes, this is generally fine.

If we use the Mapbox API (like for fonts and glyphs) and use our own vector tile set - we are still allowed to use the [Light] and Dark styles?

No.

Or where is the line drawn

Basically, these styles can only be used with the Mapbox streets and terrain vector tiles retrieved via our APIs under our Terms of Service.

[manuelroth]

Removed the streets, dark and light styles from our website osm2vectortiles/osm2vectortiles@722f966 and this repository 36d9c6c. Sad to do this, these are beautiful styles, were a big enhancement to our website and to show what is possible with the help of vector tiles.

[pnorman]

Perhaps you could do something based on the styles from v1.2.10 of mapbox-gl-styles which is licensed ISC.

The package.json file takes a SPDX identifier, so even though it's only the title, it's clear what it points to.

[klokan]

I have been reading trough the GitHub code commits, and in fact, the repository mapbox-gl-styles had an assigned license since the beginning (Jun 16, 2014) until the license has changed in May 2016.
I have overlooked this previously:

In package.json:

...
  "license": "ISC"
...

The full text of the license is at http://spdx.org/licenses/ISC, it means:

Permission to use, copy, modify, and/or distribute this software for any purpose
with or without fee is hereby granted, provided that the above copyright notice and
this permission notice appear in all copies.

The license still remains to be linked from the latest NPM page of the package, as published by a MapBox employee, for the version 2.0.2 made from the GitHub repo, at:
https://www.npmjs.com/package/mapbox-gl-styles

Screenshot with the link to the full license (2016-06-30 at 14.21.52):

It looks like all the styles in the commit on March 22nd 2016 are published under the ISC license:
https://github.com/mapbox/mapbox-gl-styles/tree/1ac5e784907e50c2284c7cc59169ac64ce4e885c

@michaelsteffen could you please comment on this subject?

[pnorman]

Also, for reference, the npm site from 2015-09-19

The text "ISC" is a link to http://web.archive.org/web/20150915155728/http://opensource.org/licenses/ISC

[michaelsteffen]

Hi @klokan - This was incorrect in the package.json metadata, as we made clear in the repo itself. Prior to the recent addition of the LICENSE.md file, we'd not decided how to license these styles. See:

• missing LICENSE file mapbox/mapbox-gl-styles#207
• Add LICENSE file according to package.json mapbox/mapbox-gl-styles#306

I've since fixed the package JSON so it correctly identifies the code license as BSD 3-Clause. The other aspects of the license (e.g over the design elements) are as specified in https://github.com/mapbox/mapbox-gl-styles/blob/master/LICENSE.md. We can republish to get this updated on NPM.

More generally, I'd just say that Mapbox open licenses the vast majority of the work we do. For GL styles, that includes the Basic and Bright styles. For the few things that we consider part of our brand, like the Mapbox Streets style, we'd just ask that you respect that, and either work from the other styles we've made open, or develop you own. Thanks.

[klokan]

@michaelsteffen Do you know the "MapBox Streets style" (in a basic variant for mapnik) has been released under plain BSD license, including LICENSE.txt here:
https://github.com/mapbox/mapbox-studio-streets-basic.tm2
This remains to be an unmodified BSD without any excluded rights...

[pnorman]

It's also worth noting I'm basing work on https://github.com/mapbox/mapbox-studio-streets-basic.tm2.

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@michaelsteffen To clarify, are requesting people don't use v1.x of mapbox-gl-styles, or attempting to revoke the open source license that you published them under?