The CDDL provides patent protection for all Sun-produced CDDL code. The MPL does the same for MPL code. Show me where that patent protection is revoked for the case of a fork.
If you can show me that revocation in plain language, I'll believe you, you win.
If I take Open Solaris code and republish it under the CDDL, I'm covered. If I make modifications to it while complying with the CDDL, I'm still covered (the whole point of the license). If I keep making modifications without adding any new Sun contributions, I'm still covered (nothing in the license requires you use contributions from anyone else). I can continue this under the license until the two versions ("Open Solaris" and "my new *NIX") are quite different, IOW, a fork.
How about Jim Driscoll at Sun, someone who's been answering a lot of critical questions about the CDDL:
Saying that Sun can take away the CDDL that Sun has given the community is both disengenious and factually incorrect. Sun (like Apache, and FSF) can change future licenses, but the old code remains under the old license. And if you don't like the new license, you can fork under the old one. To repeat, this is not a Sun Evil Plot (tm)Or you could read Sun's executive summary of their changes from the MPL, showing their goal is to reduce even further the stress of worrying about patents.
Or their FAQ:
What does the CDDL say about patents?Pretty clear. Sun doesn't want ANY patent mess going on with CDDL code. You lose.The CDDL provides an explicit patent license for code released under the license. This means that you can use, modify, and redistribute code released under CDDL without worrying about any patents that the contributors of the code (including Sun) might have on the contributed technology. The license also includes a provision to discourage patent litigation against developers, by revoking the rights to the code for anyone initiating a patent claim against a developer regarding code they have contributed.
None of your links contain a written statement from Sun that they won't sue, either.
You've linked to it several times. It's called the CDDL. Sun won't say "you're covered for patents if you fork" directly because the ability is so damn obvious in the license.
As a matter of fact, neither has IBM when it comes to that, as Bruce Perens has pointed out.
Completely different matter. IBM is promising not to enforce its patents that may cover code written by others, and it's a different license. Sun is promising not to enforce its patents on its code when it's used IAW the CDDL.
So what, modifications aren't "Sun-produced" code.
Sun is promising not to enforce its patents on its code when it's used IAW the CDDL.
No they're not, nowhere in your post did we find one person from Sun "promising" anything in that regard.
If you fork Open Solaris you very well could be sued for patent infringement. Section 2.1(d) also covers this:
no patent license is granted: (1) for code that You delete from the Original Software, or (2) for infringements caused by: (i) the modification of the Original Software, or (ii) the combination of the Original Software with other software or devices.
Argue more if you want, but you just keep losing by more and more.