Re: [RFC] Updating the PHP License

On 1/10/26 23:04, Ben Ramsey wrote:

On 7/9/25 22:22, Ben Ramsey wrote:

Hello internals, I’m opening discussion on an RFC proposing that we relicense PHP under the Modified BSD License (SPDX identifier: BSD-3-Clause), starting with PHP 9.0. This change simplifies and modernizes our licensing, addressing long-standing issues while preserving the rights of both contributors and users. Below is a quick summary of what the RFC proposes and what it means for developers. - Proposes that PHP 9.0 adopt the Modified BSD License (BSD-3-Clause),    replacing the current PHP and Zend Engine licenses. - The Modified BSD License is OSI-approved, GPL-compatible, and widely    recognized in the open source community. - Your rights as a developer—use, modification, distribution—remain    unchanged. - Extensions and tools may adopt BSD-3-Clause in place of the outdated    PHP License. - The update removes confusing legacy clauses tied to branding and    permissions. I’ve spoken with all members of the PHP Group, and each has voiced their approval of this proposal. The Perforce legal team has also informally approved, and I will be working with them to get a formal letter of approval soon. The RFC is available at: https://wiki.php.net/rfc/php_license_update Discussion will remain open for at least six months to ensure all interested parties have an opportunity to respond. Cheers, Ben P.S. For legal questions or concerns, I’m working with Pamela Chestek of Chestek Legal <https://www.chesteklegal.com> on behalf of the PHP Group. You may be familiar with her work as chair of the license committee for the Open Source Initiative.

I'm following up with a reminder that this RFC is still under discussion. I've just made the following changes to the text of the RFC: - As requested, I've compiled an email thread all members of the PHP   Group participated in to voice approval of the proposal. I've linked   to this document under the "Do We Require Permission From the PHP   Group?" section, but for convenience, it is available here: https://static.ben.ramsey.dev/php/rfc/license-update/php-license-update- php-group-correspondence.pdf - I've opened pull requests to php-src and web-php that includes the   patches that implement the proposed license changes. I've updated the   links under the References > Patches section:   - https://github.com/php/php-src/pull/20904   - https://github.com/php/web-php/pull/1762 - I changed the year "2025" to "2026" in the license text in the section   "New LICENSE File." I've requested a formal document from Perforce agreeing to the license changes for the Zend Engine License, and I'm waiting to hear back from them. Once I have that, I'll update the RFC to include a link to that document. I won't announce a vote before then (and, of course, I'll follow the cooldown rules for feature proposals). Cheers, Ben

Hi all! I've made the following updates to the PHP License Update RFC: - The copyright name for Zend is now listed as "Zend Technologies Ltd., a subsidiary of Perforce Software, Inc.," except in cases where a shorter variant is warranted (e.g., the version output), where it is listed as "Zend by Perforce." - I've added an example of what the php --version output will look like following the license/copyright changes. - I've updated the RFC to include a link to the consent letter from Zend Technologies legal counsel. The important thing in this message is the link to the Zend consent letter: https://static.ben.ramsey.dev/php/rfc/license-update/zend-technologies-php-license-consent.pdf With this formal consent from Zend/Perforce, we are ready to proceed! Discussion has been formally open since July 10, 2025. You may find the full thread here: https://news-web.php.net/php.internals/127984 The last message posted to the mailing list was on January 11, which means 46 days have elapsed, and according to our policy, we must have a cool down period of at least 7 days prior to opening a vote, but due to the nature of this RFC, I'm allowing 14 days for any further questions, concerns, or general discussion before opening a vote. Unless there are significant issues raised in the meantime, I plan to open the vote on or shortly after March 13; I'll send an "intent to vote" message closer to that date. As a reminder, the RFC is available at https://wiki.php.net/rfc/php_license_update Cheers, Ben

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