IUSA controversy: Intellectual property problems

I, Ilya Rekhter, oversaw the creation of a GPS bus tracking system within the Indiana University Student Association, which I initially nicknamed LiveArrive, then DoubleMap. It has come to my attention that a few individuals have made incorrect and malicious accusations about my intentions in relation to the system that was developed.

The facts are simple: I organized a development team, bought parts for the system with IUSA funds through a bank account, launched the system with IUSA and continue to help IUSA maintain the service as an outside adviser. The 2009-10 IUSA Congress, not the current Congress, oversaw and voted on this project every step of the way. The bank account in question has been audited and closed, and IU Legal was made aware of the way in which this system was developed. Unfortunately, accusations about creative ownership and the way this project was managed, based largely on misinformation, have continued to come forth even after this information has been made available.

Today, a few of the past and present members of the IU community have alleged that the system was not accomplished in the best manner.

IU Legal, the IU Research and Technology Corporation, the IUSA Congress and the Student Activities Office have audited the entire process and concluded that they support the procedure and members of the current and past IUSA administrations. Administrators have even commented, “This is the best project in IUSA’s history.”  

The basic problem that IUSA members face with a project of this scale is that it is difficult to pay $4,000 or $5,000 and wait three weeks to be reimbursed, and I was no different. The initial reimbursements for the project left me without several thousand dollars for weeks, so the IUSA treasurer and I discussed the idea of opening a bank account with the allocated funds in the exact same way that IUSA tickets create Chase business accounts for the election.

Chase and IUSA required this to be a business account because the other option of a personal account would not be appropriate. The account, which was named “LiveArrive LLC,” was set up to provide transparency. The IUSA ticket accounts at Chase, just like the “LiveArrive LLC” account, are always audited and closed at the end of the election, or in this case, at the completion of the project. The IUSA ticket accounts and “LiveArrive LLC” account are then audited by the Student Activities Office to ensure all funds were allocated in the correct manner. The account is closed today, and no LLC, tax identification number or reminder of the account exists. No company exists, so feel free to reference the Indiana Secretary of State website to see for yourself.

These individuals have also stated that the University has all ownership over the system and has intellectual property rights over it. I had initiated discussions with Indiana University on this matter prior to the petition being filed but immediately requested that IU Legal look into the accusations about the system and any possible validity the statements held from their perspectives. At this point, IU Legal, in conjunction with UITS, has concluded that the University does not have any ownership rights over the intellectual property related to the bus tracker.

As much as I am flattered by accusations claiming that I attempted to sell this system to other schools, our system was built only with IU student needs in mind. This means that neither the selected hardware nor written software are capable of supporting transit systems outside of IU.

Our system fulfills the needs of our students, but the code would have to be rewritten from scratch based on a more advanced, reliable GPS unit to even fathom the idea of moving it to another campus.

Allegations claiming that I had attempted to sell the system to University of Minnesota are ludicrous based upon this exact premise, and it should be noted that I never contacted any university official.

A site named www.uofm.doublemap.com existed but was used to get user input on features we were working on for IU’s system before we released them to the public as opposed to selling anything to Minnesota. We picked a different location than IU to make testing less confusing and never made contact with anyone from Minnesota.

In a good faith effort to show my intentions regarding the system, I, Ilya Rekhter, donate all intellectual property rights to the code developed during my time serving as transportation officer to the Indiana University Student Association in recognition of the opportunity provided to me to accomplish a unique project through IUSA.

I am extremely proud of the system my team and I developed and hope students continue to use it to its full potential.

This is a world-class institution, and the IU community deserves world-class transportation.

Ilya Rekhter
is an alumnus of IU who served as IUSA’s chief of transportation.