New language in the third draft of the GNU General Public License, GPL v3, has the potential to reach beyond big Linux vendors with its proposed licensing rules that govern how most open source software is deployed and modified.

Some of the terms in the just-released draft also have the potential to adjust software practices at search engine giant Google, which uses open source widely within its own infrastructure. But Google manager of Open Source Programs, Chris DiBona, told internetnews.com he doesn't see a problem with the draft license.

DiBona noted two points in the latest version. One is a clause that said "mere interaction with a user through a computer network, with no transfer of a copy, is not conveying," in a reference to how license terms are conveyed.

The other is the so-called "Affero" clause, which refers to the Affero General Public License (or AGPL). The AGPL is a derivative of the GPL, v2 and is intended to provide GPL rights over a network application.

Full article: internetnews.com