Can I change the agreements for projects under the Joint Development Foundation?

The goal of the Joint Development Foundation is to help projects get up and running quickly, without the need to negotiate custom agreements.  To do this, the Joint Development Foundation has produced and vetted its legal agreements with experts in the field.  Much like you use the Creative Commons or Apache licenses as-is, projects under the Joint Development Foundation use the Joint Development Foundation provided agreements as-is.  That said, we're very open to working with the community to develop future versions of the agreements.  If you'd like to see changes, please let us know and get involved.

What kind of infrastructure does the Joint Development Foundation provide for Projects?

The Joint Development Foundation provides the legal infrastructure to establish and run projects.  Most projects, however, will provide their own technical infrastructure to run the projects day-to-day.  There are lots of great options available at low to no cost, like Group Groups for mailing lists, Basecamp and Group Spaces for project management, Github for collaboration, and Office Online for document creation.  The Joint Development Foundation can also provide or facilitate providing services including bank accounts, project management service, secretariat, etc.  These services would be provided for a fee.

Why are there different intellectual property options?

Each project had different needs and goals, and the Joint Development Foundation provides options to help projects meet their particular goals. 

Does the Joint Development Project participate or control projects?

No.  Projects operate independently and the Joint Development Foundation does not get involved with projects directly.   The Joint Development Foundation, will, however, monitor projects to help ensure that the project’s activities are operated in accordance with the foundation's corporate purpose and policies, such as its non-profit status and regulatory guidelines.

Other questions?

Send us an email at [email protected].