Open Source Software Shows Its Muscle (Law.com)

It doesn't come across to me like the article's author is unreasonably biased against open
source software.  Rather, he has a much different perspective than we do regarding the recent
stepping-up of GPL enforcement activity.

Remember, the difference between your view of software licensing and your lawyer's view of
software licensing is this: it's not your lawyer's job to make sure you comply with licenses.
His job is to figure out what's going to happen if you don't.  So this author, like any lawyer,
works from the assumption that his client has failed to follow the terms of the GPL and is now
at risk of being sued.

From a corporate attorney's perspective, the recent GPL legal actions are frightening because
(a) there is little (no?) case law to suggest how the GPL will be interpreted and applied in
court, and (b) unlike in license enforcement lawsuits in the proprietary world, the copyright
holders are not seeking monetary damages but license compliance, potentially even
retroactively.  It is completely unknown how a court would decide a suitable remedy for GPL
violations.  Especially if there are many copyright holders of the GPL code, a court might
determine that simple financial restitution may not be appropriate, regardless of the amount.
It is even within the realm of possibility that a court might compel the publication of what
was intended to be "trade secret" company source code.

Now lawyers have no idea how to gauge the legal risks when their clients modify and/or
redistribute GPL software.  They can no longer say "Well, in the worst case we might be forced
to pay $X million in damages but all our IP will be intact."  This is scary for any company
whose entire worth is based on the perceived value of their proprietary software.

So, while I agree that there is a certain amount of FUD and/or misunderstanding in the article
(copyright claims on output?!?), companies with products containing a mix of open and closed
code really should be aware that if their use of GPL code is infringing or even just falls in
a grey area, they run the risk of a lawsuit with potentially ruinous consequences.