This proposal aims to:
(1) Affirm the ZERA Network License (2) Affirm the Rules of Engagement (3) Authorize zera-os (ZERA Open Source) repository to contain any/all ZERA Network related Open-Source items or any directly or indirectly related ZERA code. This doesn't make it an official repository, though recognizes and authorizes it to contain the code as described above. (4) Relicense the ZERA ts/js SDK to Apache 2.0 (5) Recognize https://zera.net as a community domain. (6) Third party general authorization
In the event of a passing proposal all container herein shall be considered agreed.
We affirm (retroactively and going forward) the ZERA Network License v1.0.0 to be as follows:
ZERA Open Use and Revenue Sharing License (ZERA License v1.0)
Preamble:
This license governs the use, modification, and redistribution of software under the ZERA License. The intent of this license is to encourage developers to use, modify, and innovate with the software without up-front costs.
You are granted permission to use, modify, and distribute this software, provided that any modifications or derivative works comply with the terms of this (or newer) ZERA License.
By using, modifying, or distributing software licensed under the ZERA License, you agree to the following terms:
1. Use and Modification Rights
Any modifications or derivative works must be made publicly available under this same ZERA License
Any changes or improvements to the software must be published in an open and accessible repository within 90 days of the modification
2. Revenue Sharing and Compliance
The following revenue-sharing model applies to?any gross revenue generated from fees collected directly or indirectly as a result of executing ZERA Network code or its fee-generating derivatives, or through any fork, derivative, or implementation that replicates or extends the ZERA Network's core fee-generating logic:
A flat?25 percent?of all gross revenue collected from the network must be paid to the?ZERA Treasury Address?in a recognized currency or token listed under the Authorized Currency Equivalent ($ACE) schedule?if the licensee is NOT currently exempted under Section 8
Gross network revenue?refers to all protocol-level fees or value captured directly through the use of the software, including but not limited to:
Transaction fees
Execution or gas fees
Validator or sequencer payments
Protocol service charges
Automation or settlement fees
Any on-chain value accrual mechanisms executed by ZERA Network code or its derivatives
Revenue must be calculated on a gross basis,?prior to the deduction of operating costs, validator incentives, rebates, or redistributions
Any operator(s) (entities, protocols, etc) leveraging a fork, derivative, or modified version of the ZERA Network or its components must calculate, report, and remit this revenue on a quarterly basis. Reports and payment confirmations must be published within 90 days of the end of each fiscal quarter, using a publicly accessible and verifiable method
Clarification on Scope:
This revenue-sharing requirement does?not?apply to applications or tools that merely interact with the ZERA Network code via APIs or interfaces, as long as they do?not?modify or redistribute any ZERA fee-generating components
At all times you will comply with and adhere to the prevailing Privacy laws and Cookie laws in the jurisdiction(s) you are deemed to engage with
3. Attribution Requirements
Any public-facing implementation, modification, fork, or derivative work of this software must include a clear and prominent attribution to the ZERA Network and the original ZERA software
Attribution must include the phrase:?"This Network technology is a modification of software originally developed for the ZERA Network, licensed under the ZERA License (vX.x)
Attribution may not be removed or obscured, and derivative projects must not misrepresent their relationship to the original ZERA project
4. Breach and Legal Enforcement
In the event of a breach of these licensing terms, any holder of?ZERA?($ZRA+0000) has the right to initiate legal proceedings against the violating party. To reduce frivolous actions, the following conditions apply:
Prior to initiating litigation, the initiating party must make a good-faith effort to resolve the issue via mediation or arbitration
A governance proposal authorizing legal action must be approved and recorded via the?$LEGAL+0000?contract on the ZERA Network
If legal action results in a settlement, judgment, or awarded damages, the proceeds will be distributed as follows:
25 percent?to the individual(s) or group(s) who initiated and executed the enforcement action
75 percent?to the?ZERA Treasury
The violating party must return to full compliance with this license, make all required payments (including retroactive), and publish proof of compliance
5. No Warranty and Limitation of Liability
This software is provided "as is" without warranties of any kind, either express or implied, including but not limited to merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, or non-infringement
In no event shall the authors or contributors be held liable for any damages or claims arising from the use of this software
6. Reciprocal Ecosystem Access
Any tools, protocols, technologies, or software developed using this software - including through forks, integrations, or modifications - must be made available for?free use within the ZERA Network ecosystem
This includes the right of the ZERA Network to utilize, operate, integrate, or extend such technology?without fee, license, or restriction, provided it is used within the scope or developed using code operating under this license
This clause is irrevocable and survives regardless of licensing structure applied by the downstream project, provided ZERA code or derivatives are in use
7. Fair Market Behavior and Fee Parity
Any fork, modification, or derivative work utilizing this software or its components must not offer usage fees or economic terms?lower than the equivalent fees charged by the ZERA Network, where such a comparison exists
In cases where the ZERA Network does?not yet natively offer a comparable service, the fork or derivative must price its services in accordance with?reasonable market standards and general economic parity, as aligned with the intended design and value proposition of the original ZERA Network model
The ZERA governance process, via the?$LEGAL+0000?contract on the ZERA Network, reserves the right to review and contest any fee structures that are believed to violate this principle. Upon passage of a formal governance proposal, a?minimum fair-use fee?may be established for a given service or implementation
If such a minimum has been set by?$LEGAL+0000?governance contract on the ZERA Network, any fork, derivative, or implementation subject to this license must update its fee structures to be?no lower than the established minimum, and must do so within 90 days of the governance outcome becoming binding
Failure to comply constitutes a breach of this license and will trigger enforcement under Section 4
8. Micro-Scale Project Exemption
To support innovation and reduce the barrier to entry for early-stage or low-volume protocols, this license provides optional exemptions for?micro-scale projects?from the obligations in Sections 1 (Use and Modification Rights), 2 (Revenue Sharing), 6 (Reciprocal Ecosystem Access), and 7 (Fair Market Behavior and Fee Parity), provided the project generates?fewer than 100,000 transactions in any rolling 12-month period, measured as the?cumulative total across all ZERA-based chains, forks, or deployments operated by or affiliated with the licensee.
Projects operating below this threshold may claim exemption from the above sections but must continue to comply with all other terms of the ZERA License.
Automatic Compliance Trigger:?Upon execution of the?100,000th cumulative transaction?within any rolling 12-month period across any related ZERA-based deployment, the exemption immediately ends. The project is then subject to full compliance according to the below.
Scaling Compliance Requirement:?The licensee must come into full compliance within?60 days?of crossing the transaction threshold. During this period, they must publish a public declaration acknowledging the threshold has been exceeded and provide a timeline (within a maximum of 60 days) for fulfilling the obligations outlined in Sections 1, 2, 6, and 7.
This exemption is intended to enable fair experimentation and grassroots growth across ZERA-based ecosystems, while upholding that projects which materially benefit from ZERA's technology fulfill their responsibilities to the base protocol as they scale.
9. Single Licensee Per Project
Each project or protocol may operate under?only one licensee identity?for the purposes of this license. Multiple affiliated entities, aliases, or deployments may not be used to fragment obligations or circumvent thresholds such as those defined in Section 8.
All forks, deployments, or instances materially controlled or operated by the licensee must be treated as part of the same licensed project for compliance and reporting purposes.
Attempts to evade license terms by distributing activity across multiple licensees representing the same project or protocol constitute a breach of this license.
License Continuity Obligation:?The licensee must remain current with the most recent version of the ZERA License and all incorporated governance documents and decisions, including but not limited to the?Rules of Engagement (as shown below). Updates published by the ZERA Network become binding 30 days after publication, at which point licensees must adopt and comply with them.
10. Prohibited Use
The software may not be used, modified, or distributed in any manner that undermines or harms ZERA, the ZERA Network, its core infrastructure, governance, or foundational principles. Any such use will be considered a breach of this license.
11. Governance Documents and Decisions
The ZERA License incorporates governance documents and outcomes of ZERA governance processes as binding on all licensees. This includes, but is not limited to, the latest version of "Rules of Engagement" incorporated herein by reference, and any binding decisions enacted through the $LEGAL+0000 contract or equivalent governance mechanisms.
Governance documents and decisions may clarify, interpret, or update the obligations of this license, provided they remain consistent with its foundational principles.
Licensees must comply with all governance documents and decisions within 30 days of their publication or effective date, unless a different compliance period is explicitly stated in the decision itself.### Rules of Engagement We affirm (retroactively and going forward) the Rules of Engagement v1.0.0 to be as follows:
RULES OF ENGAGEMENT WITH THE ZERA NETWORK ("RULES OF ENGAGEMENT v1.0.0")
By accessing or using the ZERA Network you agree that you have read the disclaimer and that you are bound by the following Rules of Engagement. If you don't agree, please don't use the ecosystem and/or ZERA Network.
This document is in addition to, but not in place of, the current and any future ZERA License Agreement, where conflicting, the provisions of the License Agreement shall take precedent
The ZERA community may, at its sole discretion and without notice or liability deny access to and use of the ZERA Network or directly or indirectly associated services (the "Ecosystem"), including but not limited to blocking certain IP addresses to any party for any reason or no reason. At all times the ZERA Network and/or community reserves the right to appoint outside agent(s), third party designee(s) and/or any other entity(s) ("Authorized Agent") to take appropriate action, legal or otherwise, to provide services or for the ZERA Network and its community. This must be authorized/deauthorized via ZERA Ecosystem governance ($ZRA+000, $LEGAL+0000, $ACE+0000, $ZMT+0000, $IIT+0000) agreement. Stated governance themselves can be considered Authorized Agents. Use of the Ecosystem is intended only where it is legally permitted. By accessing or using the Ecosystem(s), you represent and warrant that your use complies with all applicable laws and regulations in your jurisdiction
The release, operation, maintenance, or provision of any Ecosystem platform, product, or service shall not be construed as creating, implying, or establishing any partnership, joint venture, agency, endorsement, or other association with the ZERA Network, its community, or any of its participants, nor shall any such activities give rise to any rights, obligations, or liabilities on the part of the ZERA
You agree that you may use the Ecosystem only for lawful purposes in accordance with the standards common for the blockchain industry. You will always comply with all relevant laws, rules and /or regulations applicable the use of and engagement with the Ecosystem
Network, its community, or its participants the ZERA Network. The name of the ZERA Network, logo(s), product and service names are proprietary designations of the ZERA Network. You must not use such designations without prior permission from an Authorized Agent unless in accordance with pre-set governance parameters which can be revoked immediately at any time for any reason
Disclaimer of warranties: you understand that ZERA cannot and do not guarantee or warrant that content available (downloaded or otherwise) or the Ecosystem will be free of viruses or other destructive code or content. You are responsible for implementing sufficient procedures and checkpoints to satisfy your particular requirements for anti-virus protection and accuracy of data input and output, and for maintaining a means external to our site for any reconstruction of any lost data. We will not be liable for any loss or damage caused by a distributed denial-of-service attack, viruses, or other technologically harmful material that may infect your computer equipment, computer programs, data, or other proprietary material due to your use of the Ecosystem or any services or items obtained through the Ecosystem or to your downloading of any material posted on it, or on any Ecosystem materials linked to it
Your use of the Ecosystem, their content and any services or items obtained through the Ecosystem is at your own risk. The Ecosystem, their content and any services or items obtained through the Ecosystem are provided on an "as is" and "as available" basis, without any warranties of any kind, either express or implied. The ZERA Network nor any ZERA community members makes any warranty or representation with respect to the completeness, security, reliability, quality, accuracy, or availability of the Ecosystem or its contents. Without limiting the foregoing, neither ZERA nor anyone associated with the ZERA community represents or warrants that the Ecosystem, their content or any services or items obtained through the Ecosystem will be accurate, reliable, error-free or uninterrupted, that defects will be corrected, that the Ecosystem or the server(s) that makes them available are free of viruses or other harmful components or that the Ecosystem or any services or items obtained through the Ecosystem will otherwise meet your needs or expectations
In no event will the ZERA Network, its community, or its community members, affiliates or their licensors and/or service providers, be liable for damages of any kind, under any legal theory, arising out of or in connection with your use, or inability to use, the Ecosystem, any Ecosystem linked to them, any content within the Ecosystemor such other Ecosystem or any services or items obtained through the Ecosystem or such other Ecosystems, including any direct, indirect, special, incidental, consequential or punitive damages, including but not limited to, personal injury, pain and suffering, emotional distress, loss of revenue, loss of profits, loss of business or anticipated savings, loss of use, loss of goodwill, loss of data, and whether caused by tort (including negligence), breach of contract or otherwise, even if foreseeable. The foregoing does not affect any liability which cannot be excluded or limited under applicable law which may include fraud
You agree to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless ZERA Network, its community, its affiliates, licensors, and service providers, Ecosystem participants, agents, licensors, suppliers, successors, and assigns from and against any claims, liabilities, damages, judgments, awards, losses, costs, expenses, or fees (including reasonable attorneys' fees) arising out of or relating to your violation of these Rules of Engagement or your use of the Ecosystem, including, but not limited to, any use of the Ecosystems' content, services and products other than as expressly authorized in these Rules of Engagement or your use of any information obtained from the Ecosystem
All matters relating to the Ecosystem and these Rules of Engagement and any dispute or claim arising therefrom or related thereto (in each case, including non-contractual disputes or claims), shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the internal laws of Switzerland without giving effect to any choice or conflict of law provision or rule (whether of Switzerland or any other jurisdiction)
Any legal suit, action or proceeding arising out of, or related to, these Rules of Engagement or the Ecosystems or any other dispute resolution of what ever kind, shall be instituted exclusively in Switzerland in the Kanton of Zug, by arbitration only
These Rules of Engagement can be changed at any time via $LEGAL+0000 governance. Your continued use means you accept these changes. In case other legal documents governing the use are added to a specific platform, where conflicting, the provisions of the latter shall take precedent
ZERA Open-Source (zera-os) represents a community-led initiative dedicated to advancing collaboration within the broader ZERA Ecosystem. The objective of zera-os is to provide an open, inclusive environment where developers, integrators, and contributors can collectively share knowledge, tools, and innovations that strengthen the ecosystem.
This initiative encourages the growth of high-quality, community-driven platforms that align with the values of transparency, decentralization, and open development.
Affirmation
The ZERA Network shall explicitly recognize and permit the zera-os organization (https://github.com/zera-os) to host repositories, documentation, and other materials directly or indirectly related to the ZERA Network and its ecosystem, provided that all hosted content is either community-owned or open-source, and in all cases lawfully distributable.
As with any open-source initiative code, contributors may independently develop and share evolving frameworks, tools, and resources (such as SDKs, libraries, or reference implementations) that the wider community may choose to adopt, adapt, or expand upon. Over time, it may serve as one of many collaborative hubs for developers, researchers, and contributors across the blockchain industry to engage, innovate, and strengthen the ZERA Ecosystem through open participation.
This recognition serves to promote collaboration and transparency but does not imply partnership, endorsement, or reliance between the ZERA Network and zera-os or any contributors therein. ZERA-OS remains an independent, community-driven effort operating within the open principles of decentralization.
The ZERA Network owns a ts/js SDK. In the event of this proposal it shall be relicensed to Apache 2.0. This license better aligns with ethos of what SDK's are meant to provide especially in a decentralized environment.
The decentralized structure of the ZERA Network naturally creates challenges in establishing recognized community reference points. To address this, and in accordance with the Rules of Engagement, governance may recognize certain resources that serve as informational or community hubs, without implying official status or central authority.
This proposal seeks to recognize ZERA.net as one such community domain. It has been developed collaboratively by dozens of community contributors and has evolved into a de facto knowledge hub featuring explanations, guides, and community perspectives related to ZERA.
This proposal affirms that any community member may reference ZERA.net when discussing, documenting, or otherwise engaging with the ZERA Network and its ecosystem.
As a condition of recognition, ZERA.net shall include a prominent link to such disclaimer on site launch and in its footer acknowledging:
(1) That its content is community-produced and may not represent a definitive or authoritative view of the ZERA Network. It may contain mistakes or content that do not align with broader community values/
(2) That recognition does not constitute endorsement, partnership, or reliance by the ZERA community or any of its governance constructs.
(3) That such recognition may be revoked at any time through governance decision.
(4) A link to this proposal where recognition is hereby granted.
This recognition is intended solely to support the community's ability to coordinate around shared educational and informational resources. ZERA.net remains independently operated and self-governed by its contributors, in alignment with the decentralized principles of the ZERA ecosystem.
The community should be encouraged to continue to build responsible sites and platforms and as applicable and seek recognized status via $LEGAL governance processes such as this.
Any member of the community can engage with any third parties to submit applications on behalf of the ZERA community provided the following conditions are met:
(1) The information submitted is generally believed to be true and accurate. (2) The user makes ZERA's decentralized ethos entirely clear, and does not represent or imply they represent ZERA or any enterprise (e.g. an official ZERA Foundation).
Authorization can be revoked for a particular user via governance or if the above terms are not satisfied.