Legal Archive

Microsoft is obliged to open up its protocols as a result of an anti-trust settlement, but with fees for protocol licensing starting at $50,000 for any hardware or software that wants to connect with the Microsoft file system, competitors complain that Microsoft is treating its obligation to open up as a lucrative revenue stream rather than the punishment that it was intended to be. They note that "the general practice in the industry is to license protocols for free.''

"If patent law had been applied to novels in the 1880s, great books would not have been written. If the EU applies it to software, every computer user will be restricted, says Richard Stallman.

Recently, during FISL (Fórum Internacional de Software Livre), in Brazil, Eric Raymond defended open source model of development and quoted: "Basically, we don't need GPL. It's based on the belief that open source software is weak and needs to be protected. With it, we continue injuring ourselves, cutting ourselves from the economic benefits of BSD license".

The U.S. patent system will undergo its most substantial overhaul in decades if a bill introduced on Wednesday becomes law.

Nokia Corporation announced that it allows all its patents to be used in the further development of the Linux Kernel. Nokia believes that open source software communities, like open standards, foster innovation and make an important contribution to the creation and rapid adaptation of technologies. Nokia also committed not to assert any of its Patents against Linux Kernel.

Developers on the Windows compatibility project Wine have been forced to abandon an important feature due to the existence of a Borland patent.