End of MySQL?

[Tom Metro]

Rich Braun wrote:
> The news broke yesterday:  Oracle to buy Sun.
> Sun bought MySQL last year...

http://www.linux-mag.com/cache/7309/1.html

  There are optimists that believe that Oracle sees real opportunity
  with MySQL. Former MySQL CEO, Mickos, being one of them:

    They can kill the business. But I don't think they will. Larry
    Ellison is smart. MySQL was getting around 70,000 downloads a day
    when I left. It's an amazing grip on young developers. Having MySQL
    makes business sense for Oracle.

  Mickos believes that Oracle will leverage MySQL to upsell their
  proprietary database and better compete with Microsoft on the
  low-end...

  The opposing camp believes that Oracle purchased MySQL only to kill
  it.

  I believe an outright dismissal of the project is unlikely. What is
  more probable is that the company will continue the policies that Sun
  has put in place over the past year; allow the project to drift
  rudderless, without strong leadership and without the resources to
  develop and manage it properly.

  This, I can almost guarantee you, is the direction Oracle will take.
  Why? Let's say, for the benefit of argument, that even if Oracle does
  wish to actively promote the development and distribution of MySQL,
  they have a problem on day one: There's no one left to do the work.
  Most of the MySQL project leaders and executive team left Sun some
  time ago...
...
  Oracle's experience with open source isn't all bad, but they certainly
  aren't one to tout OSS successes (other than the dubious Oracle
  Enterprise Linux). When's the last time you heard any news coming out
  of Berkeley DB?
...
  It will be easy to point the finger at Oracle 1-2 years from now and
  assign to them the blame for what will ultimately befall one of the
  most successful open source projects ever created. But the fact is is
  that Sun bungled the acquisition of MySQL, managed it poorly for 16
  months and is handing the mess off to Oracle.