Version 1.1-update2 - 23 August 2010 | (See http://scripts.sil.org/OFL for updates)
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Using and Distributing Fonts Licensed Under the OFL
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Using OFL Fonts for Web Pages and Online Webfont Services
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Modifying OFL-Licensed Fonts
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Licensing Your Original Fonts Under the OFL
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Choosing Reserved Font Names
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About the Fontlog
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Making Contributions to OFL Projects
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About the License Itself
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About SIL International
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Using and Distributing Fonts Licensed Under the OFL ==========================================================
Yes. You can mention the font and author in the book's colophon if you wish, but that is not required.
1.2 Can the fonts be included with Free/Libre and Open Source Software collections such as GNU/Linux and BSD distributions?
Yes! Fonts licensed under the OFL can be freely included alongside other software under FLOSS (Free/Libre and Open Source Software) licenses. Since fonts are typically aggregated with, not merged into, existing software, there is little need to be concerned about incompatibility with existing software licenses. You may also repackage the fonts and the accompanying components in a .rpm or .deb package and include them in distribution CD/DVDs and online repositories. (Also see section 5.9 about rebuilding from source.)
1.3 I want to distribute the fonts with my program. Does this mean my program also has to be Free/Libre and Open Source Software?
No. Only the portions based on the Font Software are required to be released under the OFL. The intent of the license is to allow aggregation or bundling with software under restricted licensing as well.
Yes, you can do this with both the Original Version and a Modified Version of the fonts. Examples of bundling made possible by the OFL would include: word processors, design and publishing applications, training and educational software, games and entertainment software, mobile device applications, etc.
Yes, as long some other font or software is also on the disk, so the OFL font is not sold by itself.
The intent is to keep people from making money by simply redistributing the fonts. The only people who ought to profit directly from the fonts should be the original authors, and those authors have kindly given up potential direct income to distribute their fonts under the OFL. Please honour and respect their contribution!
You are very welcome to share open fonts with friends, family and colleagues through removable media. Just remember to include the full font package, including any copyright notices and licensing information as available in OFL.txt. In the case where you sell the font, it has to come bundled with software.
Yes, as long as you make the full font package available. In most cases it may be best to point users to the main site that distributes the Original Version so they always get the most recent stable and complete version. See also discussion of webfonts in Section 2.
Yes. If the fonts are transferred from the server to the client computer by means that allow them to be used even if the computer is no longer attached to the network, the full package (copyright notices, licensing information, etc.) should be included.
The only situation in which an OFL font can be distributed without the text of the OFL (either in a separate file or in font metadata), is when a font is embedded in a document or bundled within a program. In the case of metadata included within a font, it is legally sufficient to include only a link to the text of the OFL on http://scripts.sil.org/OFL, but we strongly recommend against this. Most modern font formats include metadata fields that will accept the full OFL text, and full inclusion increases the likelihood that users will understand and properly apply the license.
By 'embedding' we mean inclusion of the font in a document or file in a way that makes extraction (and redistribution) difficult or clearly discouraged. In many cases the names of embedded fonts might also not be obvious to those reading the document, the font data format might be altered, and only a subset of the font - only the glyphs required for the text - might be included. Any other means of delivering a font to another person is considered 'distribution', and needs to be accompanied by any copyright notices and licensing information available in OFL.txt.
Yes, either in full or a subset. The restrictions regarding font modification and redistribution do not apply, as the font is not intended for use outside the document.
No. Referencing or embedding an OFL font in any document does not change the license of the document itself. The requirement for fonts to remain under the OFL does not apply to any document created using the fonts and their derivatives. Similarly, creating any kind of graphic using a font under OFL does not make the resulting artwork subject to the OFL.
1.14 If OFL fonts are extracted from a document in which they are embedded (such as a PDF file), what can be done with them? Is this a risk to author(s)?
The few utilities that can extract fonts embedded in a PDF will typically output limited amounts of outlines - not a complete font. To create a working font from this method is much more difficult and time consuming than finding the source of the original OFL font. So there is little chance that an OFL font would be extracted and redistributed inappropriately through this method. Even so, copyright laws address any misrepresentation of authorship. All Font Software released under the OFL and marked as such by the author(s) is intended to remain under this license regardless of the distribution method, and cannot be redistributed under any other license. We strongly discourage any font extraction - we recommend directly using the font sources instead - but if you extract font outlines from a document, please be considerate: use your common sense and respect the work of the author(s) and the licensing model.
1.15 What about distributing fonts with a document? Within a compressed folder structure? Is it distribution, bundling or embedding?
Certain document formats may allow the inclusion of an unmodified font within their file structure which consists of a compressed folder containing the various resources forming the document (such as pictures and thumbnails). Including fonts within such a structure is understood as being different from embedding but rather similar to bundling (or mere aggregation) which the license explicitly allows. In this case the font is conveyed unchanged whereas embedding a font usually transforms it from the original format. The OFL does not allow anyone to extract the font from such a structure to then redistribute it under another license. The explicit permission to redistribute and embed does not cancel the requirement for the Font Software to remain under the license chosen by its author(s).
The requirements differ depending on whether the fonts are linked, embedded or distributed (bundled or aggregated). Some ebook formats use web technologies to do font linking via @font-face, others are designed for font embedding, some use fonts distributed with the document or reading software, and a few rely solely on the fonts already present on the target system. The license requirements depend on the type of inclusion as discussed in 1.15.
1.17 Can Font Software released under the OFL be subject to URL-based access restrictions methods or DRM (Digital Rights Management) mechanisms?
Yes, but these issues are out-of-scope for the OFL. The license itself neither encourages their use nor prohibits them since such mechanisms are not implemented in the components of the Font Software but through external software. Such restrictions are put in place for many different purposes corresponding to various usage scenarios. One common example is to limit potentially dangerous cross-site scripting attacks. However, in the spirit of libre/open fonts and unrestricted writing systems, we strongly encourage open sharing and reuse of OFL fonts, and the establishment of an environment where such restrictions are unnecessary. Note that whether you wish to use such mechanisms or you prefer not to, you must still abide by the rules set forth by the OFL when using fonts released by their authors under this license. Derivative fonts must be licensed under the OFL, even if they are part of a service for which you charge fees and/or for which access to source code is restricted. You may not sell the fonts on their own - they must be part of a larger software package, bundle or subscription plan. For example, even if the OFL font is distributed in a software package or via an online service using a DRM mechanism, the user would still have the right to extract that font, use, study, modify and redistribute it under the OFL.
1.18 I've come across a font released under the OFL. How can I easily get more information about the Original Version? How can I know where it stands compared to the Original Version or other Modified Versions?
Consult the copyright statement(s) in the license for ways to contact the original authors. Consult the FONTLOG for information on how the font differs from the Original Version, and get in touch with the various contributors via the information in the acknowledgement section. Please consider using the Original Versions of the fonts whenever possible.
1.19 What do you mean in condition 4? Can you provide examples of abusive promotion / endorsement / advertisement vs. normal acknowledgement?
The intent is that the goodwill and reputation of the author(s) should not be used in a way that makes it sound like the original author(s) endorse or approve of a specific Modified Version or software bundle. For example, it would not be right to advertise a word processor by naming the author(s) in a listing of software features, or to promote a Modified Version on a web site by saying "designed by ...". However, it would be appropriate to acknowledge the author(s) if your software package has a list of people who deserve thanks. We realize that this can seem to be a grey area, but the standard used to judge an acknowledgement is that if the acknowledgement benefits the author(s) it is allowed, but if it primarily benefits other parties, or could reflect poorly on the author(s), then it is not.
- Using OFL Fonts for Webpages and Online Webfont Services ===============================================================
Yes! Go ahead! Using CSS (Cascading Style Sheets) is recommended. Your three best options:
- referring directly in your stylesheet to open fonts which may be available on the user's system
- providing links to download the full package of the font - either from your own website or from elsewhere - so users can install it themselves
- using @font-face to distribute the font directly to browsers. This is recommended and explicitly allowed by the licensing model because it is distribution. The font file itself is distributed with other components of the webpage. It is not embedded in the webpage but referenced through a web address which will cause the browser to retrieve and use the corresponding font to render the webpage (see 1.11 and 1.15 for details related to embedding fonts into documents). As you take advantage of the @font-face cross-platform standard, be aware that webfonts are often tuned for a web environment and not intended for installation and use outside a browser. The reasons in favour of using webfonts are to allow design of dynamic text elements instead of static graphics, to make it easier for content to be localized and translated, indexed and searched, and all this with cross-platform open standards without depending on restricted extensions or plugins. You should check the CSS cascade (the order in which fonts are being called or delivered to your users) when testing.
Yes, but you need to be careful. A change in font format normally is considered modification, and Reserved Font Names (RFNs) cannot be used. Because of the design of the WOFF format, however, it is possible to create a WOFF version that is not considered modification, and so would not require a name change. You are allowed to create, use and distribute a WOFF version of an OFL font without changing the font name, but only if:
- the original font data remains unchanged except for WOFF compression, and
- WOFF-specific metadata is either omitted altogether or present and includes, unaltered, the contents of all equivalent metadata in the original font.
If the original font data or metadata is changed, or the WOFF-specific metadata is incomplete, the font must be considered a Modified Version, the OFL restrictions would apply and the name of the font must be changed: any RFNs cannot be used and copyright notices and licensing information must be included and cannot be deleted or modified. You must come up with a unique name - we recommend one corresponding to your domain or your particular web application. Be aware that only the original author(s) can use RFNs. This is to prevent collisions between a derivative tuned to your audience and the original upstream version and so to reduce confusion.
Please note that most WOFF conversion tools and online services do not meet the two requirements listed above, and so their output must be considered a Modified Version. So be very careful and check to be sure that the tool or service you're using is compressing unchanged data and completely and accurately reflecting the original font metadata.
In most cases these formats alter the original font data more than WOFF, and do not completely support appropriate metadata, so their use must be considered modification and RFNs may not be used.
Yes, you are welcome to include OFL fonts in online webfont services as long as you properly meet all the conditions of the license. The origin and open status of the font should be clear among the other fonts you are hosting. Authorship, copyright notices and license information must be sufficiently visible to your users or subscribers so they know where the font comes from and the rights granted by the author(s). Make sure the font file contains the needed copyright notice(s) and licensing information in its metadata. Please double-check the accuracy of every field to prevent contradictory information. Other font formats, including EOT/EOTLite/CWT and superior alternatives like WOFF, already provide fields for this information. Remember that if you modify the font within your library or convert it to another format for any reason the OFL restrictions apply and you need to change the names accordingly. Please respect the author's wishes as expressed in the OFL and do not misrepresent original designers and their work. Don't lump quality open fonts together with dubious freeware or public domain fonts. Consider how you can best work with the original designers and foundries, support their efforts and generate goodwill that will benefit your service. (See 1.17 for details related to URL-based access restrictions methods or DRM mechanisms).
2.5 Can I make and publish CMS themes or templates that use OFL fonts? Can I include the fonts themselves in the themes or templates? Can I sell the whole package?
Yes, you are very welcome to integrate open fonts into themes and templates for your preferred CMS and make them more widely available. Be aware that you can only sell the fonts and your CMS add-on as part of a software bundle. (See 1.4 for details and examples about selling bundles).
2.6 Some webfont formats and services provide ways of "optimising" the font for a particular website or web application; is that allowed?
Yes, it is permitted, but remember that these optimised versions are Modified Versions and so must follow OFL requirements like appropriate renaming. Also you need to bear in mind the other important parameters beyond compression, speed and responsiveness: you need to consider the audience of your particular website or web application, as choosing some optimisation parameters may turn out to be less than ideal for them. Subsetting by removing certain glyphs or features may seriously limit functionality of the font in various languages used by your users. It may also introduce degradation of quality in the rendering or specific bugs on the various platforms compared to the original font. In other words, remember that one person's optimised font may be another person's missing feature. Various advanced typographic features are also available through CSS and may provide the desired effects without the need to modify the font.
- Modifying OFL-Licensed Fonts ====================================
You are allowed to change anything, as long as such changes do not violate the terms of the license. In other words, you are not allowed to remove the copyright statement(s) from the font, but you could put additional information into it that covers your contribution.
3.2 I have a font that needs a few extra glyphs - can I take them from an OFL licensed font and copy them into mine?
Yes, but if you distribute that font to others it must be under the OFL, and include the information mentioned in condition 2 of the license.
3.3 Can I charge people for my additional work? In other words, if I add a bunch of special glyphs and/or OpenType/Graphite code, can I sell the enhanced font?
Not by itself. Derivative fonts must be released under the OFL and cannot be sold by themselves. It is permitted, however, to include them in a larger software package (such as text editors, office suites or operating systems), even if the larger package is sold. In that case, you are strongly encouraged, but not required, to also make that derived font easily and freely available outside of the larger package.
Yes. This is a good way to fund the further development of the fonts. Keep in mind, however, that if the font is distributed to others it must be under the OFL. You won't be able to recover your investment by exclusively selling the font, but you will be making a valuable contribution to the community. Please remember how you have benefited from the contributions of others.
3.5 I need to make substantial revisions to the font to make it work with my program. It will be a lot of work, and a big investment, and I want to be sure that it can only be distributed with my program. Can I restrict its use?
No. If you redistribute a Modified Version of the font it must be under the OFL. You may not restrict it in any way beyond what the OFL permits and requires. This is intended to ensure that all released improvements to the fonts become available to everyone. But you will likely get an edge over competitors by being the first to distribute a bundle with the enhancements. Again, please remember how you have benefited from the contributions of others.
3.6 Do I have to make any derivative fonts (including extended source files, build scripts, documentation, etc.) publicly available?
No, but please consider sharing your improvements with others. You may find that you receive in return more than what you gave.
3.7 If a trademark is claimed in the OFL font, does that trademark need to remain in modified fonts?
Yes, any trademark notices must remain in any derivative fonts to respect trademark laws, but you may add any additional trademarks you claim, officially registered or not. For example if an OFL font called "Foo" contains a notice that "Foo is a trademark of Acme", then if you rename the font to "Bar" when creating a Modified Version, the new trademark notice could say "Foo is a trademark of Acme Inc. - Bar is a trademark of Roadrunner Technologies Ltd.". Trademarks work alongside the OFL and are not subject to the terms of the licensing agreement. Please refer to the appropriate trademark laws.
- Licensing Your Original Fonts Under the OFL ===================================================
Yes! We heartily encourage everyone to use the OFL to distribute their own original fonts. It is a carefully constructed license that allows great freedom along with enough artistic integrity protection for the work of the authors as well as clear rules for other contributors and those who redistribute the fonts. The licensing model is used successfully by various organisations, both for-profit and not-for-profit, to release fonts of varying levels of scope and complexity.
If you want to release your fonts under the OFL, we recommend you do the following:
- 4.2.1 Put your copyright and Reserved Font Names information at the beginning of the main OFL.txt file in place of the dedicated placeholders. Include this file in your release package.
- 4.2.2 Put your copyright and the OFL text with Reserved Font Names into your font files (the copyright and license fields). A link to the OFL text on the OFL web site is an acceptable (but not recommended) alternative. Also add this information to any other components (build scripts, glyph databases, documentation, test files, etc). Depending on the format of your fonts and sources, you can use template human-readable headers or machine-readable metadata.
- 4.2.3 Write an initial FONTLOG.txt for your font and include it in the release package.
- 4.2.4 Include the relevant practical documentation on the license by including the OFL-FAQ.txt in your package.
We won't do the work for you. We can, however, try to answer your questions, unfortunately we do not have the resources to review and check your font packages for correct use of the OFL.
No, although if the font is of sufficient quality and general interest we may include a link to it on our partial list of OFL fonts on the OFL web site. You may wish to consider other open font catalogs or hosting services, such as the Unifont Font Guide (http://unifont.org/fontguide), The League of Movable Type (http://theleagueofmovabletype.com), Kernest (http://kernest.com/) or the Open Font Library (http://openfontlibrary.org/), which despite the name has no direct relationship to the OFL or SIL. We do not endorse any particular catalog or hosting service - it is your responsibility to determine if the service is right for you.
- to meet needs for fonts that can be modified to support minority languages
- to provide a legal and clear way for people to respect your work but still use it (and reduce piracy)
- to involve others in your font project
- to enable your fonts to be expanded with new weights and improved writing system/language support
- to allow more technical font developers to add features to your design (such as OpenType and Graphite support)
- to renew the life of an old font lying on your hard drive with no business model
- to allow your font to be included in Libre Software operating systems like Ubuntu
- to give your font world status and wide, unrestricted distribution
- to educate students about quality typeface and font design
- to expand your test base and get more useful feedback
- to extend your reach to new markets when users see your metadata and go to your website
- to get your font more easily into one of the webfont online services
- to attract attention for your commercial fonts
- to make money through webfont services
- to make money by bundling fonts with applications
- to make money adjusting and extending existing open fonts
- to get a better chance that foundations/NGOs/charities/companies who commission fonts will pick you
- to be part of a sharing design and development community
- to give back and contribute to a growing body of font sources
- Choosing Reserved Font Names ===================================
These are font names, or portions of font names, that the author has chosen to reserve for use only with the Original Version of the font, or for Modified Version(s) created by the original author.
5.2 Why can't I use the Reserved Font Names in my derivative font names? I'd like people to know where the design came from.
The best way to acknowledge the source of the design is to thank the original authors and any other contributors in the files that are distributed with your revised font (although no acknowledgement is required). The FONTLOG is a natural place to do this. Reserved Font Names ensure that the only fonts that have the original names are the unmodified Original Versions. This allows designers to maintain artistic integrity while allowing collaboration to happen. It eliminates potential confusion and name conflicts. When choosing a name, be creative and avoid names that reuse almost all the same letters in the same order or sound like the original. It will help everyone if Original Versions and Modified Versions can easily be distinguished from one another and from other derivatives. Any substitution and matching mechanism is outside the scope of the license.
5.3 What do you mean by "primary name as presented to the user"? Are you referring to the font menu name?
Yes, this applies to the font menu name and other mechanisms that specify a font in a document. It would be fine, however, to keep a text reference to the original fonts in the description field, in your modified source file or in documentation provided alongside your derivative as long as no one could be confused that your modified source is the original. But you cannot use the Reserved Font Names in any way to identify the font to the user (unless the Copyright Holder(s) allow(s) it through a separate agreement). Users who install derivatives (Modified Versions) on their systems should not see any of the original Reserved Font Names in their font menus, for example. Again, this is to ensure that users are not confused and do not mistake one font for another and so expect features only another derivative or the Original Version can actually offer.
You may not use individual words from the Reserved Font Names, but you would be allowed to use parts of words, as long as you do not use any word from the Reserved Font Names entirely. We do not recommend using parts of words because of potential confusion, but it is allowed. For example, if "Foobar" was a Reserved Font Name, you would be allowed to use "Foo" or "bar", although we would not recommend it. Such an unfortunate choice would confuse the users of your fonts as well as make it harder for other designers to contribute.
Original authors are encouraged to name their fonts using clear, distinct names, and only declare the unique parts of the name as Reserved Font Names. For example, the author of a font called "Foobar Sans" would declare "Foobar" as a Reserved Font Name, but not "Sans", as that is a common typographical term, and may be a useful word to use in a derivative font name. Reserved Font Names should also be single words. A font called "Flowing River" should have Reserved Font Names "Flowing" and "River", not "Flowing River". You also need to be very careful about reserving font names which are already linked to trademarks (whether registered or not) which you do not own.
No, but we strongly encourage you to do so. This is to avoid confusion between your work and Modified Versions.
No. That is a change to the license as of version 1.1. If you want any names to be Reserved Font Names, they must be specified after the copyright statement(s).
The Copyright Holder(s) can give certain trusted parties the right to use any of the Reserved Font Names through separate written agreements. For example, even if "Foobar" is a RFN, you could write up an agreement to give company "XYZ" the right to distribute a modified version with a name that includes "Foobar". This allows for freedom without confusion.
5.9 Do font rebuilds require a name change? Do I have to change the name of the font when my packaging workflow includes a full rebuild from source?
Yes, all rebuilds which change the font data and the smart code are Modified Versions and the requirements of the OFL apply: you need to respect what the Author(s) have chosen in terms of Reserved Font Names. However if a package (or installer) is simply a wrapper or a compressed structure around the final font - leaving them intact on the inside - then no name change is required. Please get in touch with the author(s) and copyright holder(s) to inquire about the presence of font sources beyond the final font file(s) and the recommended build path. That build path may very well be non-trivial and hard to reproduce accurately by the maintainer. If a full font build path is made available by the upstream author(s) please be aware that any regressions and changes you may introduce when doing a rebuild for packaging purposes is your responsibility as a package maintainer since you are effectively creating a separate branch. You should make it very clear to your users that your rebuilt version is not the canonical one from upstream.
Yes. List your additional Reserved Font Names after your additional copyright statement, as indicated with example placeholders at the top of the OFL.txt file. Be sure you do not remove any exiting RFNs but only add your own.
- About the Fontlog ========================
It has three purposes: 1) to provide basic information on the font to users and other developers, 2) to document changes that have been made to the font or accompanying files, either by the original authors or others, and 3) to provide a place to acknowledge authors and other contributors. Please use it!
It is not a requirement of the license, but we strongly recommend you have one.
No, but users, designers and other developers might get very frustrated with you if you don't. People need to know how derivative fonts differ from the original, and how to take advantage of the changes, or build on them. There are utilities that can help create and maintain a FONTLOG, such as the FONTLOG support in FontForge.
It is typically a separate text file (FONTLOG.txt), but can take other formats. It commonly includes these four sections:
- brief header describing the FONTLOG itself and name of the font family
- Basic Font Information - description of the font family, purpose and breadth
- ChangeLog - chronological listing of changes
- Acknowledgements - list of authors and contributors with contact information
It could also include other sections, such as: where to find documentation, how to make contributions, information on contributing organizations, source code details, and a short design guide.
- Making Contributions to OFL Projects ===========================================
In many cases, yes. It is common for OFL fonts to be developed by a team of people who welcome contributions from the wider community. Contact the original authors for specific information on how to participate in their projects.
It would benefit many people if you contributed back in response to what you've received. Your contributions and improvements to the fonts and other components could be a tremendous help and would encourage others to contribute as well and 'give back'. You will then benefit from other people's contributions as well. Sometimes maintaining your own separate version takes more effort than merging back with the original. Be aware that any contributions, however, must be either your own original creation or work that you own, and you may be asked to affirm that clearly when you contribute.
7.3 I've made some very nice improvements to the font. Will you consider adopting them and putting them into future Original Versions?
Most authors would be very happy to receive such contributions. Keep in mind that it is unlikely that they would want to incorporate major changes that would require additional work on their end. Any contributions would likely need to be made for all the fonts in a family and match the overall design and style. Authors are encouraged to include a guide to the design with the fonts. It would also help to have contributions submitted as patches or clearly marked changes - the use of smart source revision control systems like subversion, svk, mercurial, git or bzr is a good idea. Please follow the recommendations given by the author(s) in terms of preferred source formats and configuration parameters for sending contributions. If this is not indicated in a FONTLOG or other documentation of the font, consider asking them directly. Examples of useful contributions are bug fixes, additional glyphs, stylistic alternates (and the smart font code to access them) or improved hinting. Keep in mind that some kinds of changes (esp. hinting) may be technically difficult to integrate.
It is likely that most authors of OFL fonts would accept financial contributions - contact them for instructions on how to do this. Such contributions would support future development. You can also pay for others to enhance the fonts and contribute the results back to the original authors for inclusion in the Original Version.
- About the License Itself ===============================
Version 1.1 is the first minor revision of the OFL. We are confident that version 1.1 will meet most needs, but are open to future improvements. Any revisions would be for future font releases, and previously existing licenses would remain in effect. No retroactive changes are possible, although the Copyright Holder(s) can re-release the font under a revised OFL. All versions will be available on our web site: http://scripts.sil.org/OFL.
No. The Copyright Holder(s) still retain(s) all the rights to their creation; they are only releasing a portion of it for use in a specific way. For example, the Copyright Holder(s) may choose to release a 'basic' version of their font under the OFL, but sell a restricted 'enhanced' version. Only the Copyright Holder(s) can do this.
The OFL is a license and not a contract and so does not require you to sign it to have legal validity. By using, modifying and redistributing components under the OFL you indicate that you accept the license.
8.4 I really like the terms of the OFL, but want to change it a little. Am I allowed to take ideas and actual wording from the OFL and put them into my own custom license for distributing my fonts?
We strongly recommend against creating your very own unique open licensing model. Using a modified or derivative license will likely cut you off - along with the font(s) under that license - from the community of designers using the OFL, potentially expose you and your users to legal liabilities, and possibly put your work and rights at risk. The OFL went though a community and legal review process that took years of effort, and that review is only applicable to an unmodified OFL. The text of the OFL has been written by SIL (with review and consultation from the community) and is copyright (c) 2005-2010 SIL International. You may re-use the ideas and wording (in part, not in whole) in another non-proprietary license provided that you call your license by another unambiguous name, that you do not use the preamble, that you do not mention SIL and that you clearly present your license as different from the OFL so as not to cause confusion by being too similar to the original. If you feel the OFL does not meet your needs for an open license, please contact us.
SIL certainly recognises the need for people who are not familiar with English to be able to understand the OFL and its use. Making the license very clear and readable has been a key goal for the OFL, but we know that people understand their own language best.
If you are an experienced translator, you are very welcome to translate the OFL and OFL-FAQ so that designers and users in your language community can understand the license better. But only the original English version of the license has legal value and has been approved by the community. Translations do not count as legal substitutes and should only serve as a way to explain the original license. SIL - as the author and steward of the license for the community at large - does not approve any translation of the OFL as legally valid because even small translation ambiguities could be abused and create problems.
SIL gives permission to publish unofficial translations into other languages provided that they comply with the following guidelines:
- Put the following disclaimer in both English and the target language stating clearly that the translation is unofficial:
"This is an unofficial translation of the SIL Open Font License into
<language_name>. It was not published by SIL International, and does not legally state the distribution terms for fonts that use the OFL. A release under the OFL is only valid when using the original English text. However, we recognize that this unofficial translation will help users and designers not familiar with English to better understand and use the OFL. We encourage designers who consider releasing their creation under the OFL to read the OFL-FAQ in their own language if it is available. Please go to http://scripts.sil.org/OFL for the official version of the license and the accompanying OFL-FAQ."
- Keep your unofficial translation current and update it at our request if needed, for example if there is any ambiguity which could lead to confusion.
If you start such a unofficial translation effort of the OFL and OFL-FAQ please let us know.
- About SIL International ==============================
SIL serves language communities worldwide, building their capacity for sustainable language development, by means of research, translation, training and materials development. SIL makes its services available to all without regard to religious belief, political ideology, gender, race, or ethnic background. SIL's members and volunteers share a Christian commitment.
The ability to read, write, type and publish in one's own language is one of the most critical needs for millions of people around the world. This requires fonts that are widely available and support lesser-known languages. SIL develops - and encourages others to develop - a complete stack of writing systems implementation components available under open licenses. This open stack includes input methods, smart fonts, smart rendering libraries and smart applications. There has been a need for a common open license that is specifically applicable to fonts and related software (a crucial component of this stack), so SIL developed the SIL Open Font License with the help of the Free/Libre and Open Source Software community.
Our main web site is: http://www.sil.org/ Our site about complex scripts is: http://scripts.sil.org/ Information about this license (and contact information) is at: http://scripts.sil.org/OFL
- OFL License modified to Markdown
N: Micah Rich
E: [email protected]
W: http://www.theleagueofmoveabletype.com
- The League of Moveable Type is an open-source font foundry, working to make the world of typography a better place.