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by joshuamorton
2148 days ago
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> That X% is at most the same for using proprietary software. AGPL does NOTHING beyond an ADDITIONAL license grant beyond that. Can you explain to me how I'd import proprietary software into google's source code repository? The concern is about source code under the AGPL. Google treats AGPL source the same way as proprietary source: you don't stick them into the source repository unless you have access under a dual (or in the case of proprietary, single) license. > There is no AGPL software in existence where damages would go over a few million dollars. While I was incorrect about punitive damages, you're also incorrect about "profit" as damages, it's not the lost profit of the infringed, but the illegitimate profit of the infringer. So the potential loss isn't the cost of a negotiated license, but the total profit of Gmail or Youtube or Ads or all three over the infringing period. Yes, that's potentially billions in copyright claims. See for example the Oracle v. Google case, where the copyright claim is for $8.8 billion in damages. So we have prior art for a ridiculous sounding copyright case with ~10Bn in damages that's currently awaiting a supreme court ruling. So X is clearly >0. |
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You grab a .dll file with a library you like, or a .so, and you commit it into git. Voila! This happens all the time.
> The concern is about source code under the AGPL.
No, the concern is about AGPL programs in general touching anything Googly. Google has batshit crazy text like this: "Do not install AGPL-licensed programs on your workstation, Google-issued laptop, or Google-issued phone without explicit authorization from the Open Source Programs Office." If you run an AGPL drawing program, you've broken Google policy.
> While I was incorrect about punitive damages, you're also incorrect about "profit" as damages, it's not the lost profit of the infringed, but the illegitimate profit of the infringer. So the potential loss isn't the cost of a negotiated license, but the total profit of Gmail or Youtube or Ads or all three over the infringing period. Yes, that's potentially billions in copyright claims.
No, you're incorrect about everything so far. I gave a correct explanation of how damages are calculated in this thread:
"1) How much did Google profit from the code? 2) How much did the other party lose?3) Are statutory damages greater? Pick the highest of the three. If it's intentional -- and in this case it isn't -- you triple it. You might toss in legal fees."
Profit isn't "total profit of Gmail or Youtube or Ads or all three over the infringing period." That'd be fuckadumb. Profit is the DIFFERENCE in how much Google made with the AGPL code compared to if didn't have that code (so loss in profit from a bit less functionality in Gmail/Youtube/Ads, cost of licensing the functionality elsewhere, or cost of developing similar functionality).
Java is core to Android. Ergo, potential damages were high. If Google decided to replace gmail with an AGPL email client, than you're correct. Perhaps if everyone at Google is as dumb as this conversation suggests, you're right, that might happen without a policy like this. In that case, X>0, and this policy makes perfect sense. If your employees can't tie their shoelaces, you need draconian policies to prevent really dumb things from happening. I was assuming a slip-up where a little bit of AGPL code slipped in, though. Not something like that.
The alleged logic behind it doesn't make sense, but I can see why Google wouldn't post "Our employees are idiots, so we won't allow the AGPL. We might shoot ourselves in the face with it if we did. We're installing padded walls too, because our hiring didn't work out, and we don't want the liability if someone runs into the wall repeatedly." Perhaps Google is saving face here.