The thought of Harmony Gold lawyers poring over my fan fiction for derivative works is kind of creepy, but this is pretty much as I might have expected.
The license chain for the 'Mech designs is still pretty opaque to me regarding the four companies I consider the mainstays; Catalyst, Piranha, Harebrained, and Iron Winds. Oh, and Microsoft.
The thought of me having some sort of project where I would necessarily have a good cause to want a license is pretty far-fetched. But, say, I wanted to have a BattleTech novel published, or something. I mean, I don't see any other way around Catalyst, which is, actually, optimal, right? I certainly would feel more comfortable approaching a company with this much love for the BattleTech Universe than a generic copyright-holder. I don't see a scenario where I would want to ask Harmony Gold for permission, or pay them, because I write a story in which I describe a Rifleman, even briefly.
So, the gentleman has done a good job of dusting off the worst cobwebs and rank speculation and for that he deserves some gratitude, at least. I look forward to the next update.