🔑 Licenses
· 5 min read
A brief explanation of copyright, trademarks, patents, and software licenses from a historical perspective and the open source movement.
In 1886, ten European countries convened in Berne, Switzerland, to sign the legal principles on the protection of the rights of artists, architects, and the common man. This was done primarily to counter the companies of the time that would steal a foreign artist's work, modify it, and then resell it under their own brand for profit. Prior to this convention, combating such behavior would require the artist to explicitly state copyright and then go on to personally defend it in court.