Publishing a license for the interface, client code, server code, and data to ensure consumers understand the legal implications of using the API, code, and data into their own applications and integrations.
API Licensing
Rules
APIs.json Apis Properties License Info
This property ensures that an API Commons interface license exists for an API, providing a machine-readable reference for an API, as well as data, backend, and front-end code
Strategies
APIs Are Legally Covered
All APIs must be reviewed by legal council and posses terms of service, privacy policy, licensing, and other regulatory and compliance requirements, making sure all the legal bases are covered bef...
APIs Meet Regulatory and Compliance Requirements
All APIs must be mapped to applicable regulatory and compliance requirements including GDPR, SOC2, PCI-DSS, and HIPAA, ensuring that API designs, data handling, and operations satisfy legal obligat...
Experiences
Onboarding
Transitioning from API discovery to integration as a consumer requires a well-defined and streamlined API onboarding process. Onboarding begins with discovery and relies heavily on clear documentat...
Change
Managing and effectively communicating changes across one or more APIs is a leading cause of instability and friction in enterprise operations. While these changes often surface in applications use...
Consistency
Achieving consistency in the design, delivery, and maintenance of HTTP APIs across an enterprise is a significant challenge—one that often complicates API operations. Small differences, such as var...
Legal
The legal aspects of producing and consuming APIs can quickly derail even the best-laid plans for API producers and disrupt the roadmaps of developers building applications and integrations. Terms ...
Lifecycle
gavel Terms of Service Production
The terms of service are the legal contract sitting behind the technical one. Clear terms set the expectations between provider and consumer about acceptable use, liability, and change. I want the ...
copyright Licensing Production
Licensing covers the API definition, the data, the schema, and the surrounding code, and each can carry different terms. Being explicit about licensing removes ambiguity about what consumers can an...
