[ih] Who owns old RFCs ?

[Dave Crocker]

On 4/23/2020 6:59 AM, Clem Cole via Internet-history wrote:
> IMO, while protecting against fake RFCs is probably a good idea too, I
> believe that what we really need is a way to protect the >>ideas<<


Indeed it might be helpful to clarify what problems or threats are of 
interest and also establish how serious a concern they are.

For example, there is a long-standing fear that a non-standards track 
IETF RFC will be promoted as if it were a standard.  And indeed, some 
folk have done this.  But after 40+ years, there is little evidence that 
this abuse has been a significant problem to the industry.

Vint's trademark suggestion has the nice combination of simplicity and 
clarity.  It's a well-established mechanism, with known benefits and 
limitations, and it's use is straightforward.  (Small concern about the 
faction that the construct is national rather than international, of 
course.)

Internauts Creed: "This is the IETF's RFC.  There are many like it, but 
this one is the IETF's."

Not sure how to affix the IETF logo as a trademark to an ASCII RFC, though.


(Small aside about trademark: The American Red Cross relatively recently 
moved from a simple red cross as its symbol to a red cross inside a 
shaded 'badge', since the former couldn't be trademarked; not 
distinctive enough.)


d/
-- 
Dave Crocker
Brandenburg InternetWorking
bbiw.net