"Now that the final version of the GNU General Public Licence version 3 has been released, the in-depth analysis of its implications can begin. Two of the first commentaries to be published have come from the legal world, and there are doubtless many more being prepared for purely internal use within software companies wondering whether to adopt the new licence. But important as both the legal and commercial details are, I believe the true significance of the GPLv3 lies elsewhere.
"For example, in all the high-profile excitement about whether the Linux kernel will or won't adopt GPLv3, its effect on consumer devices like those from TiVo, or whether the new licence does or doesn't block the Microsoft-Novell deal, one amazing fact has been overlooked: that the extremely slow, meticulous and obsessive revision of a legal document designed to regulate the use of a certain class of software has generated thousands of articles, many in the mainstream press..."
