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Any copy or substantial portion of the software must include the original MIT copyright notice and permission notice; this is the sole condition attached to the permission grant.
This analysis describes what DeepSeek's agreement states, permits, or reserves. It does not constitute a legal determination about enforceability. Regulatory applicability and practical outcomes may vary by jurisdiction, enforcement context, and individual circumstances. Read our methodology
This provision establishes the only operative compliance obligation under the license: retaining the copyright and permission notice in all copies or substantial portions, which applies to both source and binary distributions and to derivative works that incorporate substantial portions.
Under this clause, developers and organizations distributing DeepSeek-R1 or derivative works must ensure the copyright and permission notice is present in all copies or substantial portions, including in commercial products.
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"The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be included in all copies or substantial portions of the Software.Excerpt from DeepSeek's Model License
1. REGULATORY LANDSCAPE: The attribution requirement is a contractual obligation under copyright law rather than a regulatory one. Failure to comply could constitute copyright infringement under applicable national copyright statutes. No data protection or consumer protection framework is directly implicated. 2. GOVERNANCE EXPOSURE: Low. The requirement is minimal and operationally straightforward, but non-compliance with open-source license conditions has resulted in copyright infringement claims in other contexts. Organizations should establish internal processes to verify notice inclusion in all distributed copies. 3. JURISDICTION FLAGS: Copyright law governs this obligation in all jurisdictions where the software is distributed. The specific remedies available for non-compliance vary by jurisdiction but generally include injunctive relief and damages under national copyright statutes. 4. CONTRACT AND VENDOR IMPLICATIONS: Vendor and procurement agreements that involve redistribution of DeepSeek-R1 should contractually require downstream parties to maintain the attribution notice, to ensure the distributing organization is not exposed to infringement claims from DeepSeek. 5. COMPLIANCE CONSIDERATIONS: Legal teams should audit all products, services, and repositories that incorporate DeepSeek-R1 or substantial portions thereof to confirm the copyright and permission notice is present and visible in documentation, source files, or binary distributions as applicable.
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This provision establishes the only operative compliance obligation under the license: retaining the copyright and permission notice in all copies or substantial portions, which applies to both source and binary distributions and to derivative works that incorporate substantial portions.
Under this clause, developers and organizations distributing DeepSeek-R1 or derivative works must ensure the copyright and permission notice is present in all copies or substantial portions, including in commercial products.
No. ConductAtlas is an independent monitoring service. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by DeepSeek.