I can understand if Apple doesn't want to let go of OS X like that, because they after all sell a lot of hardware this way, but isn't AmigaOS 4 is in such a horribly sorry state that Amiga Inc would only win on having it support other hardware platforms better?
Yes, of course. That is if they were ever interested in making OS4 a profitable (or at least financially self-sustainable) product. It is clear that this was never their intention.
AInc had no interest in OS4, i.e. a continuation of the "classic" AmigaOS. Instead they believed it to be possible to live off simply owning the brand Amiga, and having it applied to games for mobile phones and a renamed version of Tao's "Intent" (also dead now, BTW).
Then came Hyperion, a small company that ported old Windows games to AmigaOS, MacOS and Linux, and nagged at AInc to get permission to make OS4. So far, so good. Unfortunately, they also brought along a hardware vendor, Eyetech, in the deal. OS4 had been reduced to a means for a shady computer dealer to resell outdated and dysfunctional $500 "Teron" motherboards for $900 with a new "AmigaOne" sticker to a tiny group of ignorant trademark fanatics.
AmigaOS was killed there and then (2002). They've had nearly 6 years to re-negotiate a new distribution scheme for OS4, one that doesn't include an unnecessary "hardware partner", but they've chosen not to do this. Neither did the following death of PowerPC (on the desktop, at least) seem to affect their perception of reality. The losses and ensuing lawsuits and bickering between these "AmigaOne Partners" is just sweet poetic justice. It's a bit sad that Eyetech got away from their "AmigaOne" scam with a relatively (for an "Amiga" company) hefty profit, but I doubt they'll be able to do business in the computer field again.
BTW, anything AInc/McEwen says about an "OS5" is just bullshit, of course. Why is this on Slashdot? Does the general
/. audience really appreciate the entertainment value of all this, like we hardened Amiga community members do?