It sounds like you are arguing against a different point than Drew is making here. He is saying that the AGPL is no more viral than the GPL, and that its added

It sounds like you are arguing against a different point than Drew is making here. He is saying that the AGPL is no more viral than the GPL, and that its added restrictions aren't particularly onerous. You seem to be arguing against the whole GPL family of licenses, which is a perfectly valid opinion to have, but doesn't really speak to what Drew is talking about. > This is true, and I don't see much wrong with it. I don't like the idea of other code mandating how I should release my code. I would suggest taking another look at Drew's argument for the AGPL: > The reason they spread these misconceptions is straightforward: they want to discourage people from using the AGPL, because they cannot productize such software effectively. Google wants to be able to incorporate FOSS software into their products and sell it to users without the obligation to release their derivative works. Google is an Internet company, and they offer Internet services. The original GPL doesn’t threaten their scheme because their software is accessed over the Internet, not distributed to end-users directly. Whether or not this is true of Google in particular, it is true that if you are a company writing open-source software that is accessed over the internet, the AGPL makes it more difficult for competitors to benefit from your work while keeping their improvements secret. If it was GPL-licensed, competitors could use it however they want without releasing their modified source so long as the software isn't "distributed".