Inquiry Regarding CC-BY 4.0 License and Usage Restrictions

[SyntaxSmith]

Hello Omol25 Team,

Thank you for your significant contribution to the community with the Omol25 dataset. Making such valuable resources available is greatly appreciated.

I am writing to seek clarification regarding the licensing terms. The project states that the Omol25 dataset is released under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC-BY 4.0) license. However, it also appears there are restrictions in place that prevent researchers from specific countries (including China, Russia, and Belarus) from using the dataset.

This has raised some confusion, as the practice of restricting access based on national origin seems to be in direct conflict with the terms and spirit of the CC-BY 4.0 license.

Specifically, the CC-BY 4.0 license (Section 2(a)(1)) grants a "worldwide" right to use the material. This term implies a universal, non-discriminatory grant of rights that should not be limited by geography. The core philosophy of the Creative Commons licenses and the broader open-access movement is to make knowledge and data accessible to everyone, regardless of their location or affiliation.

Imposing country-specific restrictions contradicts this fundamental "worldwide" grant and undermines the open and collaborative nature that the CC-BY 4.0 license is designed to promote.

Could you please provide some clarification on this matter?

1. Is there a specific reason for this discrepancy that we might be missing?
   Would you consider removing these geographic restrictions to fully align with the CC-BY 4.0 license you have chosen?
2. Doing so would ensure that the Omol25 dataset is truly open and accessible to the global research community, maximizing its potential impact and fostering the collaborative spirit that defines open science.

Thank you for your time and consideration. I look forward to your response.