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Comment by strken | Hacker News Reader

I'm wary of it because "make the functionality of the Program or a modified version available to third parties as a service" is vague.

If I have a web app that persists data in MongoDB and lets users query it in a complicated way[0], but doesn't provide an outright MongoDB-as-a-service implementation, it's still arguably making its functionality available. I don't trust them to enforce the edge cases fairly.

[0] For example, a custom report builder for an inventory management system, or a query builder for a CRM

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MongoDB's page says this "includes, without limitation, enabling third parties to interact with the functionality of the Program ... remotely through a computer network". That would include all (web) apps with a mongodb connection. It then adds "offering a service the value of which entirely or primarily derives from the value of the Program". That's the vague bit for me.

This sounds like the least arguable edge case possible even if they were interested in chasing it (which they wouldnt be).

Although I admit that it's unlikely they will sue you for a product that isn't just a database, you shouldn't build your product on the (perceived) goodwill of the MongoDB developers.

Meanwhile, half the world start-ups base their entire tech stack on the goodwill of amazon and google, not to pull the rug from under them in hundreds of legal ways.

Using your definition of "goodwill" means basically everything on the Internet is based on the goodwill of some other entity. I think that paying for a service pretty clearly moves it out of the "goodwill" category.

They wouldn't be... until they go under.

Then the vultures will be happy to shake folks down to pay for the licensed version or a law suit. Merit doesn't really matter, they have a claim and fighting it will cost you. They'll just bank on you preferring to pay for the license.

They may not go after the mom and pops, but they'll hit every Fortune 1000 (and probably whether they use MongoDB or not).

Also unlikely. Vultures go for easy pickings.

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