Trusted HyperGrid

The Trusted HyperGrid - Definition

The Trusted HyperGrid is a project being developed by the OpenSim-NGC team. The first word of the project name says what we're about: Building a web of trust that enables the HyperGrid to function as a contiguous whole while still allowing the hosting to be distributed across multiple providers.

Traditionally there was a distinction made between closed grids, so called "Walled Garden" grids, and the HyperGrid as a whole which tended to develop as a bit of a free for all. There isn't one standard version of OpenSim being run on the internet and the versions of the HyperGrid protocols being used vary as well. Finally, there are large differences in philosophy over whether IP should be protected vs "Sharing is Caring" where everything should be free.

Trust is about relationships. We can enforce decisions related to trust via software but ultimately people are deciding to collaborate by forming a trust relationship. In our grid example we have a couple of different important relationships: Grid resident to their home grid, Grid Owner to Grid Owner (Grid to Grid) which defines the HyperGrid element. Where the resident is a merchant, they have a relationship with a currency provider that allows commerce to occur, and the grid owner also participates in this relationship. Customers have relationships with content creators by purchasing their virtual goods. Each of these "transactions" has a set of rules and agreements that occur/must be in place for trust to exist.

Residents often choose to trust a "closed", "walled garden" because the trust relationships are well defined. The Trusted HyperGrid is taking the walled garden approach and extending it to a subset of the HyperGrid as a whole where trust and operating agreements are/have been established. These agreements allow residents of all the member grids to operate in the Trusted HyperGrid knowing the rules that are applied when transactions (of any sort) occur. We get these agreements through clearly defining what membership in a Trusted Grid means, for grid owners and for content creators/residents.

Ultimately this isn't about technology. We may bring technology to bear to help but the agreements have to exist first. Technology helps with tools to manage assets and inventories, to block or blacklist ill behaving grid and/or residents, to provide audit logs that document the transactions that take place and so on. But first and foremost, it is the TOS that defines how a grid operates and contributor agreements that indicate how a content creator must behave with regard to the IP for objects being hosted by the system.

Requirements

As a Grid Owner I want to:

• Form collaborative relationships with other grid owners to allow residents to safely transact on connected grids that follow a consistent set of rules.
• Reduce my risk as much as possible from fines for harboring infringing content in lieu of the new regulations and laws emerging in the U.S. and EU.
• Identify that infringing content in my grid and,
• Determine the sources of infringing content, so that I can remove it from my grid and block the sources from accessing my grid.
• To comply with the requirements of current and new laws, I want to: ** Have tools in OpenSim that make it easy to block individuals from uploading content as the need arises. ** I want there to be a way to identify the creator of original content or the licenses of amalgamated content.

As a Content Creator I want to:

• Upload my creations with the ability to document the provenance of the elements that make it up
• Identify those elements that represent my unique intellectual property and should be protected
• Report possible infringement of my content when improper use is noted.
• Defend my intellectual property right when required
• Make my intellectual property available to customers using a permission system that identifies how it may be used including whether it can be exported off grid.