Re: [ft] Free Fonts

[Werner LEMBERG]

>> Interesting reading :-)
> 
> He's talking nonsense IMO,

I don't think so.

> but its a murky area.

Not really IMHO.

> First, we ought to note that its common to perceive 'software' as
> meaning only programs, not data.

Well, I interpret the whole article as something about the font
designs.  Of course, the font programs in the particular font files
are protected by copyright.

> But we really are talking here purely about vector outlines, not the
> programmatic parts of fonts which are really secondary and only exist
> to  support the outlines.

Even less: If you say `vector outline' this already implicitly refers
to a programmatic representation, be it second or third order Bezier
curves (or whatever).  This article -- which is badly written, I
concur -- covers IMHO the question whether scanning the fonts and
cloning them is valid or not.

> Now, as for the type designs themselves not being subject to
> copyright, well, I am certainly unsure about that.  My reading of
> the UK law is that they are subject to the normal copyright of all
> artistic drawings.

No.  There is the “Vienna Agreement for the Protection of Type Faces
and their International Deposit” (in the German Wikipedia, the article
`Rechtsschutz von Schriftzeichen'[1] is even considered a `good
article' -- very interesting to read) which gives a protection of a
maximum of 25 years, NOT 70 years!.  However, only Germany and France
have signed it.

> So, the type designs in the 1982 Linotype catalogue may or may not be
> public domain;

All designs published in this catalogue are no longer protected.

> the font files certain are not, though.

Yep.


    Werner


[1] http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rechtsschutz_von_Schriftzeichen