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The Open, End-to-End Implementation of the Really Simple Licensing (RSL) Protocol Makes AI Licensing Accessible to Every Website Owner through Consent, Control and Fair Compensation
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VANCOUVER, British Columbia — Personal Digital Spaces (PDS) today introduced OpenRSL, the first open-sourced, decentralized implementation of the Really Simple Licensing (RSL) protocol, transforming how website owners participate in the surging AI economy by giving them direct control over how AI search engines and agents use and compensate their content.
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As AI search and agents become the fastest-growing segment of web traffic, website owners face a binary choice: block AI crawlers entirely or allow unrestricted access without compensation. OpenRSL creates a third path where consent, control and economic participation flow in both directions through the only open framework that gives website owners direct control, handles the entire licensing lifecycle, settles every transaction individually and runs without intermediaries.
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“AI innovation doesn’t have to be a zero-sum game,” said Edward Zyszkowski, co-founder, chairman and CEO of Personal Digital Spaces. “OpenRSL extends web protocols to enable all websites to control their value and participation in the AI economy. Website owners get compensated, AI developers get legal certainty and the entire ecosystem grows.”
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AI systems are consuming intellectual property at unprecedented scale, but website owners have no infrastructure to govern, license or monetize it. OpenRSL solves this structural gap with infrastructure that’s open, auditable and available to any website operator. The result is a market where incentives drive quality: when content creators are compensated fairly, they produce more high-quality content, and when AI developers have legal access to expert-curated data, they build better products.
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“I’ve spent three decades identifying trust gaps in emerging technology and building frameworks that fill them,” said Lori Fena, co-founder of Personal Digital Spaces and former chairman of the Electronic Frontier Foundation. “With TRUSTe, we created the internet’s first privacy certification. OpenRSL applies that same pattern to AI, establishing consent, control and compensation through an open framework that gives website owners back their digital sovereignty.”
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How OpenRSL Works
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PDS built OpenRSL to make direct AI licensing accessible to any website owner. Implementing the Really Simple Licensing standard, the framework creates transparent governance that works for both sides.
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In practical terms, OpenRSL gives websites a way to post “rules of the road” for AI systems in a format machines can understand. Instead of forcing website owners to choose between blocking AI tools or allowing unrestricted use, OpenRSL lets them define what is allowed, what requires permission, and what requires payment. Responsible AI developers can then read those rules, obtain the necessary authorization, and keep a record of compliant access.
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The framework enables:
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- For website owners: Set licensing terms, verify AI crawler compliance, log every access event on an immutable ledger, settle every transaction individually and maintain complete control with no intermediary capturing transaction data.
- For AI developers: Gain verified access to licensed and curated content with documented proof of compliance.
- For existing infrastructure: OpenRSL complements publishing platforms, access controls, CDNs, analytics tools, negotiated licenses, open licenses, subscription systems and legal workflows by adding a common machine-readable layer for AI-era licensing, permissioning, access verification, usage records and settlement.
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The framework supports both traditional currency and token-based payment, giving website owners flexibility in how they structure compensation. OpenRSL also enables website owners and responsible AI developers a practical, interoperable way to move from informal signals and ad hoc negotiations toward transparent, auditable and scalable licensing infrastructure.
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OpenRSL is available now. PDS’s nonprofit affiliate, Sustainable Information Economy (SIE), advances the responsible data governance frameworks that underpin the framework’s design. For information on how website owners and developers implement OpenRSL, visit www.openrsl.org.
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About Personal Digital Spaces
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Personal Digital Spaces (PDS) helps digital content owners govern, license and monetize their assets in the AI economy. PDS’s OpenRSL is the first open-source implementation of the Really Simple Licensing (RSL) protocol, letting website owners transact directly with AI companies without intermediaries. Trusted by Fortune 1000 companies across publishing, music and digital media, PDS was founded by Edward Zyszkowski, a technology leader whose AI company was acquired by IBM and integrated into its Information Server platform, and Lori Fena, founder of TRUSTe and former chairman of the Electronic Frontier Foundation. Its nonprofit affiliate, Sustainable Information Economy (SIE), advances responsible data governance globally.
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Media Contact:
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Liz Whelan
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