CC0 license

[matiasdahl]

I am currently working on a backend component (still WIP) based on this template that I would like to release under the MIT license. However, I have had trouble finding information whether this is possible. In other words: can I release a project under the MIT license even if it is a derived work from a template released under the CC0?

I tried to find some information related to this, but did not find anything conclusive. Below are some comments/links I found.

• It seems CC0 is not approved by the OSI. They also recommend At this time, we do not recommend releasing software using the the CC0 public domain dedication.
• I probably do not understand all the issues related to this correctly (and IANAL). However, the MIT license specifically grant the right to sublicense the code. However, part 3 (Public License Fallback) in the CC0 text mentions that the fallback license is "non sublicensable". However, according to gnu.org, the CC0 (and the Public License Fallback) are compatible with the GNU GPL. Related discussion.

[matiasdahl]

Sorry, I filed this issue for the wrong template.

The template I used was akka-http-quickstart-scala, but both of these templates are released under the CC0.

[johanandren]

This seems to have fallen between the cracks, I'm not sure about the legalese around the licenses, but for the record all intentions with the templates (and their licensing as CC0/public domain) is to allow anyone use the templates as a starting point for their Akka and Akka HTTP based apps in whatever way they want, regardless if those apps are OSS or proprietary.

Anything useful will likely anyway quickly diverge from the getting started app so much that the origins does not really matter.