The article that btilly linked to is very good, but I think it over-emphasizes the possibility of interpreting open source licenses as contracts. You have to re

The article that btilly linked to is very good, but I think it over-emphasizes the possibility of interpreting open source licenses as contracts. You have to read pretty far and pay close attention to understand that most open source licenses will fail as contracts and that the GPL explicitly intends that result (pp. 65-66). Some consequences: (1) the sole recourse for breach of license conditions will be to sue for copyright infringement, (2) only the copyright owner will have standing to sue, (i.e., an intermediate licensee or a user, who might have standing as a third-party beneficiary under a contract theory, will not), and (3) remedies will be limited to monetary damages.