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"path": "/user/SimonPoole/diary/408664",
"publishedAt": "2026-05-13T07:53:51.000Z",
"site": "https://www.openstreetmap.org",
"tags": [
"the open defintion",
"https://gesetzessammlungen.ag.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/740.111",
"https://ar.clex.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/723.101/versions/1594#paragraphtext_content_fn_1088706_2_5_c",
"https://ai.clex.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/211.600/versions/1729",
"https://bl.clex.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/211.58",
"https://www.gesetzessammlung.bs.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/214.305/versions/6197",
"https://www.belex.sites.be.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/215.341.2",
"https://bdlf.fr.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/214.7.1",
"https://gesetze.gl.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/VII-a.2.3",
"https://www.gr-lex.gr.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/217.300",
"https://geo.jura.ch/geodonnees/Conditions_utilisation_geodonnees_de.pdf",
"https://srl.lu.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/29a",
"https://geoportal.lu.ch/Nutzungsbedingungen",
"https://rsn.ne.ch/DATA/program/books/RSN2024/20246/htm/751.01.htm",
"https://gesetze.nw.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/214.2/versions/72",
"https://gdb.ow.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/131.5",
"https://gdb.ow.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/131.511",
"https://rechtsbuch.sh.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/211.501",
"https://www.sz.ch/public/upload/assets/5600/214_111.pdf?fp=18",
"https://bgs.so.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/711.27",
"https://www.gesetzessammlung.sg.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/760.1",
"https://www3.ti.ch/CAN/RLeggi/public/index.php/raccolta-leggi/legge/num/565",
"https://www.rechtsbuch.tg.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/211.442",
"https://rechtsbuch.ur.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/9.3431",
"https://prestations.vd.ch/pub/blv-publication/actes/consolide/510.62.1?key=1563175880164&id=f00e70fb-4cf1-4f01-927c-8e937e833178",
"https://lex.vs.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/211.700",
"https://bgs.zg.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/215.711",
"http://www.zhlex.zh.ch/Erlass.html?Open&Ordnr=704.11",
"https://www.fedlex.admin.ch/eli/cc/2008/389/de#art_21",
"https://www.fedlex.admin.ch/eli/cc/2023/682/de#art_10",
"https://sosm.ch/use-of-swisstopo-data-and-products-with-and-in-openstreetmap/"
],
"textContent": "[This is a work in progress, IANAL and this isn’t legal advice]\n\nLots of data is Switzerland is produced by the cantonal GIS offices (while it might seem to originate from swisstopo it often doesn’t), for example the hiking path/trail data is all cantonal and we can only utilise such data, even when using the data distributed by swisstopo, if the cantonal terms are compatible with our license.\n\nIn the following I’m using _open_ in a hand wavy, “close enough” fashion here, and not applying the strict definition as per the open defintion. _Class A_ refers to the federal ordinance definition for generally accessible geo data1.\n\nTo set the scene: Switzerland does not have sui generis database rights regulation or anything similar, nor does it adhere to a sweat of the brow copyright doctrine. Between non-government entities any (minimal) protection available is based on contract and fair competition law. The big exception is geo data where the federal government has written in to law rights that are essentially a “data copyright light” and many of the cantons have followed suit.2 There is no relevant case law that I know of and how any of this would work out in an actual dispute is, well, open.\n\nThe cantonal regulations are, being nice, quirky. For example Appenzell Ausserrohdens reference to federal copyright law that is going to put any lawyer that needs to determine if access is possible in to a tail spin. And while referencing GeoIV Art 30 (the federal ordinance) as Luzern does, would superficially seem to be good given that we have access to swisstopos data, it actually rules out use in OSM.3 Most of the _No_ entries for otherwise “open” data are due to downstream attribution requirements. In some cases the “ToU” or similar are available in separate documents or are distributed with the data, obviously I can’t make any overall statement in such cases. I would further note that a _No_ in the OSM compatible column isn’t absolute but it does imply high friction and potential negotiations on a dataset by dataset base.\n\nNOTE this does not cover access to cadastre data (AV, Amtliche Vermessung) that typically has specific regulations, but naturally if “normal” class A data isn’t open the cadastre data isn’t going to be either.\n\n⠀⠀⠀⠀ | Class A data is open | OSM compatible | |\n---|---|---|---|---\nAG | Yes | No | | https://gesetzessammlungen.ag.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/740.111 §16a\nAR | ? | ? | | https://ar.clex.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/723.101/versions/1594#paragraphtext_content_fn_1088706_2_5_c §21a, §22 has a reference to the federal copyright law\nAI | Yes | Yes | | https://ai.clex.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/211.600/versions/1729 §6\nBL | Yes | No | | https://bl.clex.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/211.58 §29\nBS | Yes | No | | https://www.gesetzessammlung.bs.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/214.305/versions/6197 §19\nBE | No | No | | https://www.belex.sites.be.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/215.341.2 §19, §22\nFR | Yes | Yes | | https://bdlf.fr.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/214.7.1 §7\nGE | Yes | ? | | rsGE E 1 46.01: Réglement sur la géoinformation (Rgéo-GE) §26, rsGE B 4 23: Loi sur l’administration en ligne (LaeL) §10\nGL | Yes | Yes | | https://gesetze.gl.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/VII-a.2.3 §27\nGR | ? | ? | | https://www.gr-lex.gr.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/217.300 §16 essentially there are no rules pertaining to the use of the data\nJU | No | No | | https://geo.jura.ch/geodonnees/Conditions_utilisation_geodonnees_de.pdf\nLU | ? | No | | https://srl.lu.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/29a §8 tou https://geoportal.lu.ch/Nutzungsbedingungen which references the federal GeoIV Art 30 which is highly problematic\nNE | Yes | Yes | | https://rsn.ne.ch/DATA/program/books/RSN2024/20246/htm/751.01.htm\nNW | Yes | Yes | | https://gesetze.nw.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/214.2/versions/72 §12\nOW | No | No | | https://gdb.ow.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/131.5 https://gdb.ow.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/131.511\nSH | Yes | Yes | | https://rechtsbuch.sh.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/211.501 §8\nSZ | Yes | ? | | https://www.sz.ch/public/upload/assets/5600/214_111.pdf?fp=18 §9 note that there are some datasets in class A that are not open\nSO | Yes | Yes | | https://bgs.so.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/711.27 §7\nSG | Yes | Yes | | https://www.gesetzessammlung.sg.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/760.1 §10\nTI | No | No | | https://www3.ti.ch/CAN/RLeggi/public/index.php/raccolta-leggi/legge/num/565 §16\nTG | Yes | Yes | | https://www.rechtsbuch.tg.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/211.442\nUR | Yes | Yes | | https://rechtsbuch.ur.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/9.3431 §16\nVD | Yes | No | | https://prestations.vd.ch/pub/blv-publication/actes/consolide/510.62.1?key=1563175880164&id=f00e70fb-4cf1-4f01-927c-8e937e833178 §11, §19\nVS | No | No | | https://lex.vs.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/211.700 §16\nZG | ? | ? | | https://bgs.zg.ch/app/de/texts_of_law/215.711 individual datasets may have terms of use that are OSM compatible\nZH | Yes | Yes | | http://www.zhlex.zh.ch/Erlass.html?Open&Ordnr=704.11 §13a and the relevant appendices\n\n? law or ordinance unclear or delegates to tou that are not included in the relevant law or ordinance\n\n 1. https://www.fedlex.admin.ch/eli/cc/2008/389/de#art_21 ↩\n\n 2. why these offices felt the need for these counterproductive rules is unclear, maybe it is a holdover from the old days when the main product was maps, which are naturally covered by classical creative work copyright. In any case it leads to absurd consequences for example the EMBAG https://www.fedlex.admin.ch/eli/cc/2023/682/de#art_10 having to make a specific exception to cater for this silliness and making the data unavailable for the largest open geo data project in the world. ↩\n\n 3. the swisstopo data is accessed based on a specific exception in their ToU that we had to fight for and which does not exist for the canton Lucerne, see https://sosm.ch/use-of-swisstopo-data-and-products-with-and-in-openstreetmap/. ↩\n\n\n",
"title": "Cantonal open data in Switzerland"
}