Open Gaming License
Encyclopedia
The Open Game License may be used by game developers to grant permission to modify, copy, and redistribute some of the content designed for their games, notably game mechanics.
Open Game Content (or OGC)
Product Identity (or PI)
Note that PI is content covered by normal copyright.
Licensees are prevented from distributing, copying, or modifying PI, and may not use the contributor's name for the purposes of marketing or advertising, unless permission is acquired through a separate license or agreement with the holders of the PI.
Finally, the OGL requires attribution be maintained by the copying of all copyright notices from OGC a licensee is copying, modifying or distributing. This requires that the license notice itself must be altered by adding all copyright notices to the Section 15 part of the license.
A link to the full text can be found below.
in 2000 to license their Dungeons & Dragons
game as the System Reference Document
, or SRD, in a move spear-headed by Ryan Dancey. It is commonly used with the d20 license to allow individuals, amateur and professional companies and groups to publish the SRD and derivative works under the d20 System
trademark
. As of June 2008, a new royalty-free license called the Game System License
(GSL) is available for third-party developers to publish products compatible with Dungeons & Dragons 4th edition. The GSL is incompatible with the previous OGL.
Those individuals, groups and publishing companies that license their works under the OGL, and similar documents, are sometimes collectively referred to as the "open gaming
movement".
Language of the licence
The OGL describes two forms of content:Open Game Content (or OGC)
Product Identity (or PI)
Note that PI is content covered by normal copyright.
Using the OGL
By attaching this license game developers allow the use of their OGC and any additional content they may have indicated to be OGC. This use is perpetual, worldwide, royalty-free, and non-exclusive as long as the use is accompanied by a copy of the OPL with all the Copyrights updated to credit the contributors of all OGC that was used. All used OGC is to be indicated with a notice.Licensees are prevented from distributing, copying, or modifying PI, and may not use the contributor's name for the purposes of marketing or advertising, unless permission is acquired through a separate license or agreement with the holders of the PI.
Finally, the OGL requires attribution be maintained by the copying of all copyright notices from OGC a licensee is copying, modifying or distributing. This requires that the license notice itself must be altered by adding all copyright notices to the Section 15 part of the license.
A link to the full text can be found below.
Background
It was published by Wizards of the CoastWizards of the Coast
Wizards of the Coast is an American publisher of games, primarily based on fantasy and science fiction themes, and formerly an operator of retail stores for games...
in 2000 to license their Dungeons & Dragons
Dungeons & Dragons
Dungeons & Dragons is a fantasy role-playing game originally designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson, and first published in 1974 by Tactical Studies Rules, Inc. . The game has been published by Wizards of the Coast since 1997...
game as the System Reference Document
System Reference Document
The System Reference Document, or SRD, is a set of reference role playing game mechanics licensed under the Open Game License by Wizards of the Coast and based upon their Dungeons and Dragons role-playing game. The SRD forms the basis of WotC's various d20 System role-playing games, including the...
, or SRD, in a move spear-headed by Ryan Dancey. It is commonly used with the d20 license to allow individuals, amateur and professional companies and groups to publish the SRD and derivative works under the d20 System
D20 System
The d20 System is a role-playing game system published in 2000 by Wizards of the Coast originally developed for the third edition of Dungeons & Dragons...
trademark
Trademark
A trademark, trade mark, or trade-mark is a distinctive sign or indicator used by an individual, business organization, or other legal entity to identify that the products or services to consumers with which the trademark appears originate from a unique source, and to distinguish its products or...
. As of June 2008, a new royalty-free license called the Game System License
Game System License
The 4th edition Game System License was released to the public on June 17, 2008. This license is similar to, but more restrictive than, the Open Game License that was created for 3rd edition of Dungeons & Dragons...
(GSL) is available for third-party developers to publish products compatible with Dungeons & Dragons 4th edition. The GSL is incompatible with the previous OGL.
Those individuals, groups and publishing companies that license their works under the OGL, and similar documents, are sometimes collectively referred to as the "open gaming
Open gaming
Open gaming is the movement within the role-playing game industry that is somewhat similar to the open source movement. The key aspect is that authors give recipients of works covered by copyright a license to certain rights, such as the right to make copies or the right to create derivative...
movement".