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GPLv3, Apache Compatible in Final Draft


By Alex Handy
July 1, 2007 — 
It’s been more than a year since the first draft of the GNU Public License version 3 reared its head. Since that time, its keepers at the Free Software Foundation (FSF) have slowly taken comments and adjusted the license to fit the needs of the many communities that use it. Now, with the release in early June of what it’s calling the final draft of the license for public scrutiny, the FSF is nearing the end of its work.

Perhaps the biggest single development in this draft of the license is the addition of wording that makes GPLv3 compatible with the Apache License Version 2.0. In the end, the changes needed to make these two licenses compatible with each other were fairly trivial, according to the FSF, and required the change of a few words and the addition of some clarifications around patent indemnification.

Another major addition to this draft is a grandfathering date for the clauses describing discriminatory patent promises. Specifically, some of GPLv3’s patent restrictions will apply only to deals made after March 28, 2007. The reasoning behind this clause, which would seemingly exempt the controversial Microsoft/Novell deal from the anti-discriminatory restrictions, was described, if confusingly so, in the GPLv3 Rationale paper:

“The main reason for this is tactical. We believe we can do more to protect the community by allowing Novell to use software under GPL version 3 than by forbidding it to do so.... It will apply, under the Microsoft/Novell deal, because of the coupons that Microsoft has acquired that essentially commit it to participate in the distribution of the Novell SLES GNU/Linux system. Microsoft is scrambling to dispose of as many Novell SLES coupons as possible prior to the adoption of GPLv3. Unfortunately for Microsoft, those coupons bear no expiration date, and paragraph 6 has no cut-off date. Through its ongoing distribution of coupons, Microsoft will have procured the distribution of GPLv3-covered programs as soon as they are included in Novell SLES distributions, thereby extending patent defenses to all down-stream recipients of that software by operation of paragraph 6.”

Since Microsoft’s distribution of coupons for SLES support—but not for the distribution of software implied by the wording of this explanation—also extend patent litigation protections to the recipient, the FSF maintains that this is a form of limited protection rather than a broad patent protection, which is mandated by the GPLv3. As such, Microsoft’s limited patent protections would be placed in a precarious legal state if GPLv3 software were to mix into SLES.

Finally, the FSF removed references to an American law relating to warranties in order to satisfy international users. Sections that extended amnesty to product users who circumvent copyright protections contained within a GPLv3 program were also adjusted, for clarity.

The FSF hopes to finish up work by the end of the summer.


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