Respecto a los productos derivados de MySQL, te dejo una cita de un libro de Administración MySQL que leí recientemente...
Cita: CLONE WARS?
If you have spent time researching MySQL, you most likely have encountered at least one database system that
claims to be a derivative of MySQL. While several vendors offer a variant (sometimes called a fork or port) of
MySQL—some being backed by small startup companies and one by the original developers of MySQL—none of
these will match the level of expertise and development prowess of Oracle’s fostering of MySQL.
You may encounter variants that you may be able to use with this book. Given the major advances of MySQL in
recent releases, however, you would do well to use the official MySQL source for your exploration of the source
code. Some variants may eventually include the newest features, but at this time, it is unlikely they will be up to
date with Oracle’s releases. Vendors offering variants include MariaDB, SkySQL, and Percona.
En conclusión, es poco probable que productos de terceros estén al nivel de experiencia y conocimiento de Oracle y MySQL.
Saludos