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Access to APSIM

The APSIM Initiative (AI) aims to encourage entrepreneurial research and development by all interested parties through broad licensing of the APSIM Software. APSIM is available either for non-commercial or commercial purposes, through the APSIM Community Source Framework. Through this framework, the intent is to develop a high-quality and enduring agricultural production systems modelling platform with global reach. APSIM may be used for applications in agricultural systems, for developing science-based enhancements to the modelling capability, or a combination of both. All access will be through approved licence agreements.

Non-Commercial Use:

For non-commercial purposes, access to APSIM will be free of charge to 3rd parties, who in turn relinquish ownership of improvements to the AI. Non-commercial use of APSIM means public-good research & development and educational activities. It includes the support of policy development and/or implementation by, or on behalf of, government bodies and industry-good work where the research outcomes are to be made publicly available. The AI will provide regular official releases of APSIM free of charge for non-commercial use to those who agree to the terms of the license agreement.

Plain English APSIM Non-Commercial Licence Summary:

The following is a Plain English Version of the standard 3rd Party, Non-Commercial Licence Agreement. Please note that this summary of the Non-Commercial Licence is provided for the information of interested persons. It is not the Agreement. In the event of any disagreement between the terms of the Licence Agreement and this summary, the Agreement prevails.

Any individual or organisation (a 3rd party outside of the AI) who wants to use APSIM must be licensed do so by the AI. Key elements of the licence are as follows:

  • The licence is a legally binding agreement between the licensee and the parties of the AI (currently the State of Queensland, the University of Queensland, the University of Southern Queensland, CSIRO and AgResearch Ltd.). The licence agreement permits the licensee to use APSIM for research and development and for education. All commercial uses are explicitly excluded. Proposals for commercial use will be considered by the AI but this licence will not apply. Separate agreements will be negotiated on a case-by-case basis.
  • The standard licence is for a fixed term of 3 years and is renewable. The licensee's right to use APSIM ends when the licence ends. The standard licence permits APSIM to be used anywhere in the world.
  • Non-commercial use of APSIM is free of charge. Licensed users can use the APSIM software and models, access other APSIM intellectual property and can also access the source code of APSIM.
  • Intellectual property rights in APSIM are retained by the AI. If a licensee makes any improvements to APSIM, the intellectual property rights to those improvements belong to the AI. This means that the AI can choose to make the improvements - including source code - available to all licensed users
  • Licence holders use APSIM at their own risk. The licensee and the AI each take no responsibility for any loss or liability resulting from their having breached the terms of the licence agreement. The agreement requires the licensee and the AI to negotiate in good faith to resolve any dispute. If this fails, technical questions must be adjudicated by an independent expert, while non-technical matters must be put to mediation.