It is perfectly understandable that people on this list are curious to know what is happening with QRpedia and its transfer to Wikimedia UK. I'll do my best to clarify as much as I am able.
First of all it is not about money or payments. Roger and Terence have been absolutely clear about this from the start – there is no financial consideration and the transfer of ownership is a donation to Wikimedia UK and the community from Terence and Roger. The delays have been many over the last eighteen months but we are almost there.
This has not been a simple process and we had to make sure we got it right. The heads of agreement that we signed with Roger in February was an expression of mutual trust and a desire to make the QRpedia platform available to the whole world and sustainable to those already using it. The recent statement of the Wikimedia Foundation about “wiki towns” ( http://blog.wikimedia.org/2013/03/08/wmf-trademark-practices-for-qr-codes-an...) is a step forward in making the availability greater.
So what are the delays?
Firstly, holding our hands up here, we have been relying on pro-bono legal advice to do most of the work in getting the full arrangements in place. There have been some delays owing to the lawyer concerned having a rush of his paid work. We have been holding off saying more until that was signed. It is important for everyone concerned, particularly the charity, that we get this right.
Secondly - and this scares anyone who understands such things, which doesn't include me - there is a issue concerning a possible patent troll that needs to be resolved as it could be a risk to the charity. The concerns arising here are complicated - it's possible that Saad may be able to say more when he gets a chance - and they do need to be properly examined. To complete the transfer before doing this I believe would be negligent.
The technical issues have been addressed so we are ready to move forwards on that side of things. There is an concern that has been raised about whether the use and storage of information to produce the statistics at http://qrpedia.org/stats.php is fully compliant with EU privacy legislation. We're seeking advice on whether this is an issue that requires a change in the current use of data, but it is expected that agreeing a privacy policy and updating our data registration will be enough. Our technical consultants are confident they can implement whatever is needed, if required.
I hope we will have more news to report soon. I appreciate everyone wants to see the transfer finalised - myself as much as anyone, considering the amount of time I've invested in this - but I hope you'll agree that it is worth the wait in order to be certain that the transfer is done properly.
Doug Taylor