Eclipse Oniro Core Platform restructuring review

PMI link: Eclipse Oniro Core Platform restructuring review

The EMO is scheduling a restructuring review on behalf of the Oniro Core Platform project team.

This restructuring review aims at changing the license of all the existing Yocto/OE Apache-2.0 files in the oniro-core repository to MIT.

Please see: eclipse/oniro-core/oniro#824 (closed)

Background

The Oniro repository (https://gitlab.eclipse.org/eclipse/oniro-core/oniro) currently uses 3 licenses for the included files:

1. Apache-2.0 (Yocto/OE layers files)
2. CC-BY-4.0 (documentation)
3. MIT.txt (Yocto/OE layers files)

Due to how these Yocto/OE layers interact with upstream layers (including oe-core), having parts of our layers licensed under Apache when most (if not all) of our upstream dependencies (and generally the entire ecosystem) are MIT, would pose a couple of issues:

1. Using our layers would introduce a new license to a downstream consumer that needs to be assessed.
2. Reusing parts of our code would pose an issue of relicensing on Oniro or the downstream side.
3. Upstreaming Apache code would need relicensing on the Oniro side before upstream could accept contributions (unless upstream is up for a license addition which in most cases is not an option).
4. Mistakes can happen and end up with "silent" relicensing in different situations.

To avoid all the above we propose to change all the existing Yocto/OE Apache-2.0 files in this repository to MIT

License change

To complete this restructuring review we need:

• EMO(ED) approval
• IP rights transfer agreement from past contributors (already done via this issue)