Mozilla has announced the release of the first beta for version 2.0 of the Mozilla Public License (MPL). Changes in MPL 2.0 include the removal of the “Original Software” and “Initial Developer” concepts, improved globalisation with the removal of many US-specific terms and concepts, better compatibility with other licences, as well as updated patent language that's more in line with other major open source licences.

Additionally, MPL 2.0 has been "simplified and shortened", and the notification requirements have been made "dramatically simpler and easier to fulfill". In a post on her blog, Mozilla Foundation Chairperson Mitchell Baker says that "we [at Mozilla] believe that this beta is now feature complete, meaning that it addresses all major known issues," noting that, "Of course if there are policy changes that come up and need to be made we will address them".

The non-profit organization behind the open source Firefox web browser originally announced that it would update the Mozilla Public License in March of this year, as the current Mozilla Public License, version 1.1, is already more than 10 years old. Unlike the Free Software Foundation (FSF), which last made changes to its GNU General Public License (GPL) in June of 2007 with the release of version 3, the MPL has remained largely unchanged since its inception. According to Mozilla, the aim of the review is to modernize the MPL and "simplify it while still keeping the things that have made the license and the Mozilla project such a success".

Detailed information about the update process, including the full text of the MPL 2.0 Beta 1 draft, can be found on Mozilla's Updating the MPL, Scope and Process and Schedule web pages. An FAQ about the MPL revision process is also provided.

See also:

Mozilla re-assesses its mission, a report from The H.

(crve)