GHG Protocol has published a draft royalty-free Licensing Policy and plans to integrate this agreement into all online calculation tools and standards in the New Year. GHG Protocol website visitors will be asked to sign-in before downloading all online tools and standards and will then be asked to accept or decline the license presented before them. Users will not be asked to accept the license every time they download tools and standards; a one-time review of the license is all that is required.

The Policy is intended to foster open communication among GHG Protocol and its users by establishing a common understanding among users of what their rights and obligations are concerning intellectual property and end-usage.

The main premise behind the GHG Protocol Licensing Policy is to permit free use and reproduction of the GHG Protocol tools and standards to develop applications and programs that add substantial additional value. The Policy also allows transmitting, distributing, and marketing of the tools and standards to users of the programs. The Policy does allow translation of the GHG Protocol tools and standards with a separate agreement and also offers guidance on trademarks and branding, as well as training licenses.

The draft Licensing Policy is available to download in the table below. GHG Protocol is making the Policy available for public comment for 30 days. To provide comments on the draft, please fill-in the online form at the bottom of this page by December 24.