Perhaps this is part of the new trend for companies to initially put out something absolutely terrible -> public gets outraged -> company "fixes" their problem and is thus looked on more favorably than they would be had they just released something decent originally (my conspiracy theory regarding the Sonic movie.)
Wasn't it a leaked draft rather than a public statement ... ooh, or maybe the conspiracy theory is they leaked it on purpose to generate the debate you mention .
Unpopular opinion here, I'm sure, but I don't think there's anything wrong in principle with WotC wanting to get a share of profits that other companies are making from their intellectual property. Though I agree that specific wording of parts of the draft OGL give some cause for concern, and if implemented badly could stifle investment in alternative, competing products, I think WotC would be shooting themselves in the foot if so as those competitors can help increase interest in their own properties as well as bring them in another potential revenue stream. So while of course they might not be acting in good faith, and I'm aware they don't have a great reputation as a collaborative partner, I don't think it's necessary to assume the worst at this point.
"You may call it 'nonsense' if you like, but I've heard nonsense, compared with which that would be as sensible as a dictionary!"
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