Free and Open Source Software Under Turkish Copyright Law

Abstract

Under Turkish law, there exist no FOSS licenses specifically tailored for the Turkish jurisdiction, and no significant jurisprudence on the matter has been reported. Despite the lack of concentrated scholarly attention, the use of various international FOSS licenses is common in the Turkish private sector, and the public administration has also launched several projects that operate under FOSS licenses. In light of such willingness in the public and private sectors to embrace the FOSS licensing regime, an exploration of the current legal status of FOSS licenses under Turkish Copyright Law is of pressing importance. This article analyses the legal position of FOSS licenses and similar licensing schemes under the current body of Turkish legislation, namely, under the law of contracts and the copyright law regimes. By examining the application of the current provisions of Turkish Law, the Author intends to clarify the current position and certain peculiarities relevant to FOSS licenses in Turkish jurisdiction.

Keywords: Turkish copyright law, FOSS licenses, formal requirements, license contracts