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by toyg 3018 days ago
> Are there copyright holders engaging in abusive litigation?

Some enforcement efforts have been controversial, particularly the VmWare suit and other efforts by SFConservancy. I wouldn't call them trolls, but a lot of people think they are too heavy-handed.

On the other hand, with nobody wielding a stick, there is no real incentive not to abuse free licenses - which is exactly why the GPL exists in the first place.
2 comments
LukeShu 3018 days ago
The SF Conservancy has always done exactly what CA/Cisco/HPE/Microsoft/SAP/SUSE are now pledging to do. It's part of their Principles of Community-Oriented GPL Enforcement.

Whether or not you think they are too heavy-handed, or think they are trolls: SF Conservancy-like behavior isn't the type of behavior being addressed here.

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throwaway2048 3018 days ago
How are they too heavily handed? the only thing they ask for in negotiation and lawsuits is GPL compliance, they dont demand money, or anything else.

If following the license is too much to ask for, what exactly does "not heavy handed" mean?

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kuschku 3018 days ago
> If following the license is too much to ask for, what exactly does "not heavy handed" mean?

The "enforcement" that Torvalds wants is what you see with Android today: Everyone ships blobs of kernel builds, with the source never released.

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crankylinuxuser 3018 days ago
And that shit needs to stop now.

If I want to bloody recompile the LK on my phone to install a proper linux, that or other GPL tools shouldn't be blockers.

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anon1385 3018 days ago
> they dont demand money

A linux developer demanding money from GPL violators is (seemingly) what triggered this action. See http://www.zdnet.com/article/linux-beats-internal-legal-thre...

>McHardy has sued companies for Linux GPLv2 violations in over 38 cases. In one, he'd requested a contractual penalty of €1.8 million. The company also claimed McHardy had already received over €2 million from his actions.

>what exactly does "not heavy handed" mean

It means not permanently revoking their licence to use the code again, even once they have become compliant. It's a common complaint made about the GPLv2 which was clarified in GPLv3

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throwaway2048 3018 days ago
The poster i was replying to was talking about SFC, not that case.
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