You can say it all you want, it doesn't make it true

Posted Jul 25, 2013 20:53 UTC (Thu) by khim (subscriber, #9252)
In reply to: You can say it all you want, it doesn't make it true by oshepherd
Parent article: Android 4.3

They have invested lots of work into WebKit, with no requirements that they support any platform besides their own, and yet it has become the worlds' most ported browser engine under their watch.

That one is direct result if GPL. LGPLv2 to be precise. WebKit was born when people complained about lack of Safari's source code. And it was always separable from Safari exactly because Apple knew that they will be forced to release source code.

IOW: Apple (and many other companies) accepted GPLv2. They were not happy, but they accepted GPLv2 "tit for tat" principle. When GPLv3 arrived with it's "I'm altering the deal. Pray I don't alter it any further." approach they rebelled.