License Profile: The Eclipse Public License

Abstract

The Eclipse Public License (“EPLâ€) is an open source license that is widely used in various open source projects, most notably by the Eclipse Foundation. The EPL is often described as a weak copyleft license, and contains a narrower and, some argue, more precise reciprocity obligation than that of the GNU General Public License (“GPLâ€). Further, the EPL includes a patent retaliation provision intended to discourage patent litigation, but still limited in scope so as to not scare off companies with large patent portfolios. This article provides a summary and overview of the EPL