I can offer a bit more insight, if I may. I believe the IPDB does have permission, at least for much of the the WMS/BLY stuff there. (Was told this indirectly by someone who spoke with Planetary Pinball.)
As for the whole pinrepair mess, please be aware that the issue is not about a bunch of "cheapskate crybabies"! Yes, Clay has spend a huge amount of time and effort in organizing the repair info, and preparing much of it himself. Everyone I have seen is grateful for that effort, without question. It's really not about the money at all, so the "cheapskates" slur is uncalled-for.
The problem began, I believe, when someone got local authorities riled up about Clay's Tilt Town arcade (making false statements/allegations), which led to TT being shut down. Apparently in 'retaliation.' Clay decided to pull the repair website offline. (Note that he was not even paying for the web hosting; someone else was hosting the website and covering costs.) Along with this, Clay arranged with PPM to allow PPM to sell DVDs of the repair manuals, except that Clay did not have the rights to the material to allow this.
The two main issues in this fiasco are: 1) Several people prepared and contributed material to the manuals with the explicit intent that the info be made freely available to the pin community. These contributors objected to Clay's attempt to have this info available only by paying for the DVD. 2) Clay took the repair guides OFFLINE. People who contributed the info did so with the understanding that it would be freely available to all. The repair guides are constantly being updated. Accessing them online allows for such updates and instant access to the latest version. OTOH, issuing a DVD means that it is NO LONGER POSSIBLE to (a) easily access the info from any device with an internet connection; and (b) keep the info updated and current, and allow new info to be added easily.
It really isn't about the money. I would gladly pay $10 or more, or donate to a pinball organization, to keep the info online and updated. But Clay took that option off the table when he pulled the website. So, there is a new pinwiki being developed to publish the info online, and not have it remain solely under the control of a single quirky individual.
HTH!