Anybody downloading the code will have to obtain a royalty-free license from RSA to use it, separate from whatever other license
applies (i.e. the ASL). Period. Unless the ASF talks them into changing their mind, that's the story. No ambiguity intended.
Will it be royalty-free forever and ever? No idea. But whatever you're reading into the statement they posted, I can clearly
communicate that the above is exactly what we've been told in plain English.
If that's a deal-breaker for the board, then I'm simply suggesting that that be made clear so that the principals can either drop
the proposal or tell RSA that it's a problem. The latter has been done informally, but obviously there's a stronger case to be made
to them if we can say "change it or the standard isn't going to be accepted".
My opinion is that the board will not accept such a proposal. The board
might accept a conditional grant wherein the license to use is revoked
for a given user if and only if that user sues RSA for patent infringement.
Such grants are the commonly accepted form of a mutual-defense license.
....Roy (speaking with my ASF board member hat on)
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