Tim Pritlove talks to Shane Coughlan of Free Software Foundation Europe who is in charge of the FSF Freedom Task Force (FTF) project. The FTF provides actively supports free software projects by providing consulting and networking support as well as a new service called Fiduciary Licence Agreement (FLA) that allows copyright holders of free software to pass over the exploitation rights to the FSF or other project foundations. By handing over these rights, GPL violations can be much easier taken care of as it is no longer the obligation of the individual copyright holder to go after these violations. In the interview, Shane Coughlan explains how this works and which projects should consider making use of the FLA.
An Interview on Chaos Radio
About the author
Shane Coughlan
Shane Coughlan is an expert in communication methods and business development. He is well known for building bridges between commercial and non-commercial stakeholders in the technology sector. His professional accomplishments include establishing a legal department for the primary NGO promoting Free Software in Europe, building a professional network of over 270 legal counsel and technical experts across 4 continents, and aligning corporate and community interests to launch both the first law journal and first legal book dedicated to Free/Open Source Software. He has been part of the OIN licensing team since November 2009 and has lead the team since August 2013.
Shane has extensive knowledge of Internet technologies, management best practice, community building and Free/Open Source Software. His experience includes engagement with the server, desktop, embedded and mobile telecommunication industries. He does business in Europe, Asia and the Americas, and maintains a broad network of contacts.