Difference between Affero-GPL and GPLv3
LicensingLicensing Problem Overview
What is the difference between the Affero General Public License and the GNU General Public License (GPL)?
Licensing Solutions
Solution 1 - Licensing
Assume the following:
You are developing a server side application in GPL. Now this application serves HTML and not an executable which is directly executed on your machine. That means that another guy could take the GPL code, adapt it and does not necessarily need to publish it. Ie. he can create the identical service using your software without violating the GPL. (Although THEN he cannot publish the software itself i.e. selling)
Not so with the AGPL.
This hole in the GPL is often called "Application Service Provider" hole.
Search for "Why AGPL" or "AGPL vs. GPL" or just read this for some real projects who have problems with GPL. The MongoDB tries another interesing thing. They want that people do not fork the core DB (thatwhy AGPL) but the driver which has to be linked with the main program is apache 2.0 licensed so that the mongoDB could be used within commercial application.
Public web application that uses the AGPL are listed at wikipedia.
Solution 2 - Licensing
See http://www.gnu.org/licenses/licenses.html#AGPL
> The GNU Affero General Public License is based on the GNU GPL, but has an additional term to allow users who interact with the licensed software over a network to receive the source for that program. We recommend that people consider using the GNU AGPL for any software which will commonly be run over a network.