Editing Open Source Initiative (section)

==Open Source Definition==
{{main|the Open Source Definition}}
[[The Open Source Definition]] is a derivative document based on the Debian Free Software Guidelines (DFSG), released in 1997 by Bruce Perens. As Debian Project Leader, Perens released the scribed DFSG on July 4, 1997. In an announce post, Perens states he hopes other distributions use the DFSG as a model and states "We hope that other software projects,
including other Linux distributions, will use this document as a model.
We will gladly grant permission for any such use." 
{{cite mailing list |title=Debian's "Social Contract" with the Free Software Community|
work=Research Mailing List|date=2025-04-24|url=https://lists.debian.org/debian-announce/1997/msg00017.html}}

Any organization can use the Debian Free Software guidelines by citing the Social Contract. No open source definition required.

Perens modified the Debian Free Software Guidelines into the Open Source Definition by removing Debian references and replacing these with "Open Source". The original announcement of [[The Open Source Definition]] happened on February 9, 1998, on [[Slashdot]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=98/02/09/213900 |title=Free Software's New Name |publisher=Slashdot |date=February 9, 1998 |access-date=April 24, 2025}}</ref> and elsewhere; the definition was given in [[Linux Gazette]] on February 10, 1998.<ref name="LG">{{cite web | title=Perens Open Source Definition LG #26 | website=Linux Documentation Project | url=https://www.linuxdoc.org/LDP/LG/issue26/perens.html |date=10 Feb 1998}}</ref>

Perens and Raymond established the [[Open Source Initiative]], an organization intended to promote open source software. Neither Perens nor Raymond are involved in the OSI currently.

The Open Source Definition seems to be a widely accepted standard for [[open-source software]], although open source developers choosing to use GPL, BSD, MIT, Apache licenses for projects do not require any such standard. Additionally, the DFSG could be forked and other derivatives created based on the intent of the original release of the document the Open Source Definition is based upon. 
<ref name="Mertic">{{cite book |last1=Mertic |first1=John |title=Open Source Projects - Beyond Code: A blueprint for scalable and sustainable open source projects |date=2023 |publisher=Packt Publishing Ltd |isbn=978-1-83763-385-2 |page=5 |language=en}}</ref><ref name="j787">{{cite book | last1=De Maria | first1=Carmelo | last2=Díaz Lantada | first2=Andrés | last3=Di Pietro | first3=Licia | last4=Ravizza | first4=Alice | last5=Ahluwalia | first5=Arti | title=Engineering Open-Source Medical Devices | chapter=Open-Source Medical Devices: Concept, Trends, and Challenges Toward Equitable Healthcare Technology | publisher=Springer International Publishing | publication-place=Cham | date=2022 | isbn=978-3-030-79362-3 | doi=10.1007/978-3-030-79363-0_1 | page=4}}</ref> [[Source-available software|Providing access to the source code]] is not enough for software to be considered "open-source": it must also allow modification and redistribution under the same terms and all uses, including commercial use.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Greenleaf |first1=Graham |last2=Lindsay |first2=David |title=Public Rights: Copyright's Public Domains |date=2018 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-1-107-13406-5 |page=485 |language=en}}</ref> The Open Source Definition requires that ten criteria be met for a license to be approved.<ref name="v459">{{cite book | last=Erlich | first=Zippy | title=Handbook of Research on Open Source Software | chapter=Open Source Software | publisher=IGI Global | year=2007 |  pages=187–188|isbn=978-1591409991}}</ref><ref name="b733"/> It allows both [[copyleft]]—where redistribution and derivative works must be released under a free license—and [[permissive license]]s—where derivative works can be released under any license.<ref name="b733"/><ref>{{cite book |last1=Meeker |first1=Heather J. |title=The Open Source Alternative: Understanding Risks and Leveraging Opportunities |date=2008 |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |isbn=978-0-470-25581-0 |pages=21–22 |language=en}}</ref><ref name="Laurent">{{cite book |last1=Laurent |first1=Andrew M. St |title=Understanding Open Source and Free Software Licensing: Guide to Navigating Licensing Issues in Existing & New Software |date=2004 |publisher=O'Reilly Media, Inc. |isbn=978-0-596-55395-1 |pages=9–11 |language=en}}</ref>  [[Software license]]s covered by the Open Source Definition also meet the [[Free Software Definition]] and vice versa. Both the [[Free Software Foundation]] and the OSI share the goal of supporting [[free and open-source software]].<ref name="b733"/>

===License approval process===
The OSI approves certain licenses as compatible with the definition, and maintains a list of compliant licenses. New licenses have to submit a formal proposal explaining the rationale for the license, comparison with existing approved licenses, and any legal analysis. The proposal is discussed on the OSI mailing list for at least 30 days before being brought to a vote and approved or rejected by the OSI board. Although the OSI has made an effort to have a transparent process, the approval process has been a source of controversy.<ref name="l662"/>

Seven approved licenses are particularly recommended by the OSI as "popular, widely used, or having strong communities":<ref name="l662">{{cite book | last=Smith | first=P McCoy | title=Open Source Law, Policy and Practice | chapter=Copyright, Contract, and Licensing in Open Source | publisher=Oxford University PressOxford | date=2022 | isbn=978-0-19-886234-5 | doi=10.1093/oso/9780198862345.003.0003 | pages=108–111}}</ref>
#[[Apache License 2.0]]
#[[BSD licenses|BSD 3-Clause and BSD 2-Clause Licenses]]
#All versions of the [[GPL]]
#All versions of the [[LGPL]]
#[[MIT License]]
#[[Mozilla Public License]] 2.0
#[[Common Development and Distribution License]] (CDDL)
# [[Eclipse Public License]] version 2.0