"Forked it and successfully released their own variants" is a stretch (Amazon Fire Phone), especially when Google specifically prohibits vendors that get access to Google Play to fork Android.
The fire tablets are very successful. There are a few successful forks in China. There are tons of fan built versions. Thats not a stretch.
Google restrict OEMs from forking, is certainly shitty. But its also a smart business tactic and I hope Google gets more restrictive around letting OEMs use their flavor of Android. Since it leads to a more cohesive experience surrounding Android.
