Clarity, internationalization on GPL 3 agenda

There's the Patent Reform Act of 2005, introduced in June by Representative Lamar Smith, a Texas Republican, which is set to change the way in which patents are granted and enforced. Then, the Open Source Initiative (OSI), the organization best known for deciding what is and what is not open source, is planning to reform its licensing policy. Finally, there's the GPL 3. All three factors will combine and result in "a very good" GPL 3, Greenblatt said.

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A new version of the GPL could be incredibly important, according to Jim Harvey, a partner in lawyer Alston & Bird LLP's technology practice wrote in his e-mail. "Done right, it will spur increased usage of the license and GPL software," he wrote in an e-mail interview. "Done wrong, and it could negatively impact perception of free and open-source software, which would ultimately decrease the use of the license and GPL software."

Philpott at Lane Powell believes there is a risk that changes to the GPL could create a split within the open-source community, with some developers adopting version 3 and others sticking with the provisions of GPL 2. "However, the public review and comment process should help mitigate that risk," she wrote.

Following publication of the first draft, the FSF plans to form discussion committees around the world made up of vendors, developers and individuals, according to the "GPL3 Process Definition" document it released in December. The organization expects to publish a second GPL 3 discussion draft in June, with the final version of the license likely to appear no later than March 2007 and perhaps even as early as September 2006.