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Microsoft has OS patents; Linux has none ~ Perspective: by Peter Yared ~ CNET
CNET ^ | December 4, 2006 | Peter Yared

Posted on 12/06/2006 10:26:45 AM PST by Ernest_at_the_Beach

perspective

The uproar in the open-source community over Microsoft's embrace of Novell says a lot.

It reveals that many open-source backers fundamentally don't understand the software business. When vendors compete, customers win. This is good.

Contrary to the numerous rants in the open-source community, the recent deal between Microsoft and Novell--in which the companies have agreed to interoperability, reselling and patent protection--is actually an excellent business deal and a good thing for the open-source community.

The days of kumbaya, where vendors are locked arm in arm singing open-source love songs to "grow the market" through co-opetition are over.

Microsoft is growing up after its antitrust issues. It is actually listening to its customers. Chief information officers have been telling Microsoft for years that they are sick of interoperability issues and that Microsoft has to stop acting like a big baby and learn to play well with others. The good news here is that Linux is now woven into the business fabric of every major company.

The reality of the technology business is that virtually every deal between big companies includes bilateral patent protection. Company A cross-licenses its patents with Company B. Neither acknowledges that the other is ripping off any intellectual property. Rather, each now has a finger on a legal atomic football that threatens to blow up both businesses if either goes to court to litigate for some bogus market advantage.

What usually keeps these companies from suing each other over patents is this legal notion of mutually assured destruction, since each company has patent libraries that overlap the other's cash cow products. When these companies do deals with each other, it is standard operating procedure to codify this presumptive way of doing business into the agreement--hence bilateral patent protection.

Microsoft's first deal in this new era of cooperation was with Sun Microsystems. Sun dropped its antitrust complaint (accepting a $2 billion check from Microsoft as part of the deal), and the companies pledged interoperability between their products. This deal quite naturally also included bilateral patent protection between Microsoft and Sun.

It did not, however, cover open-source developers. So let's say you download an open-source project like the NetBeans tool from Sun, add some cool features and redistribute your version of the tool. You have now violated hundreds of Microsoft patents on tools, and they can come after you.

It should be of no surprise to anyone that Microsoft holds numerous patents that Linux violates--it's just that polite company in the software industry won't say this aloud. You see, Microsoft hired folks like Dave Cutler out of DEC to build Windows NT, and it is actually an industrial-class operating system.

It originally included things like HAL (the hardware abstraction layer) that let it run on multiple processors including the PowerPC. I'm not a lawyer, and I'm not claiming that Linux violates any specific multiple-processor patent for Microsoft, but the odds are pretty much 100 percent that a good attorney from Redmond could build many different infringement cases that could go a long way in our court system.

In the Novell and Microsoft deal, many industry insiders are whining about commercial implementations, but I don't know what people expect Microsoft to do. Should they indemnify everyone who downloads and extends the Linux kernel from Novell from all of its patents?

If they did that, Red Hat could start getting the Linux kernel from Novell, be indemnified from all Microsoft operating-system patents and then sue Microsoft for the relatively few operating-system patents it has. Many of the whiners overlook what is significant about this deal. For the first time, one of these patent agreements also covers individual open-source developers.

A lot of people are saying Novell is paying "royalties" to Microsoft. Microsoft is paying Novell $108 million for Novell's patents, and Novell is paying Microsoft $40 million for Microsoft's patents. Or if you can do simple math, Microsoft is paying Novell $68 million for the patent agreement and then hundreds of millions more for Novell Suse Linux licenses and marketing expenses. Novell definitely came out on top here.

While the devil will be in the details, this deal is a good thing, and Red Hat should also do a similar deal with Microsoft. The interoperability commitment and bilateral patent protection is a good thing for customers that run Linux and Windows (every large technology customer). The patent protection is a good thing for open-source developers that extend the open-source projects covered under the agreements, since they now get more protection than they had before.

And I predict that this announcement has already forced every other major software company (BEA Systems, IBM, Oracle, SAP and others) to now consider similar deals to offer customers and developers some form of patent protection and indemnification. They have to do something, or the competitors that move first will take business away from them. Whether they announce these deals in public news conferences or offer similar protections quietly in the background to their customers, they'll have to do something.

Linux has won, and it's time to let the next phase begin. The days of kumbaya, where vendors are locked arm in arm singing open-source love songs to "grow the market" through co-opetition are over.

The software business is a ruthless business. Linux is now so important that technology vendors are fighting for competitive advantage over their peers. It's ugly. It's competition. And it's good for customers.


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Computers/Internet
KEYWORDS: linux
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To: Ernest_at_the_Beach

Tough times at Linus Torvald's employer...had to cut 1/3 of their staff this week, CEO resigns:

Linux lab cuts staff, focuses on legal issues

http://news.com.com/Linux+lab+cuts+staff%2C+focuses+on+legal+issues/2100-7344_3-6140514.html


21 posted on 12/07/2006 9:57:31 PM PST by Golden Eagle
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To: Golden Eagle

Ive heard iffy things about novell support and I have a large RedHat footprint that I don't really want to turn into a heterogeneus Linux environment.

Still if I was looking at starting a Linux environment I would give Novell a shot. This move is a *really* good thing for Linux and either Red Hat will follow suit (assuming MS is not in bed with Novell just to Bury RedHat) or they will face a much more competitive Linux market (which in the end is good for everyone).

As to your article I *might* be willing to go with Oracle on oracle servers only but there is no way I would go there with anything else.

RedHat has a reputation of being expensive, and compared to novell they might be. I find not too many people know redhat beyond the price they post on their website. Programs like the development entitlements (for Development and Testing) provides a great value. For production systems that you run for a cost of anywhere between 300 and 2400 dollars you can run with rhn support a test or development box for 50$.

RedHat also offers discounts of up to 50% depending on how many servers you are running. Right now Im in about the 30% tier.

RedHat also offers a discount of 25% for three year deals.

Finally if you buy an entitlement while you own another entitlement you will not be charged more than the lowest you have paid so right now I pay about 1400 for the most expensive rhel licenses (AS Premium) and I pay a touch over 200 for any ES and I am locked into that price until at least 2009.


22 posted on 12/08/2006 7:13:10 AM PST by N3WBI3 ("Help me out here guys: What do you do with someone who wont put up or shut up?" - N3WBI3)
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To: Echo Talon
Linux fans should be happy about the MS move, not fearful...

The fear is that they will use the deal with Novell to argue that Novell also believes that Linux violates Microsoft's patents (whether it does or not and, if so, whether they are legit or not).

Therefore, they would tell the judge, only Novell has a legal right to distribute Linux as they are the only ones who have a deal with Microsoft. If the judge buys that, other Linux vendors (like RedHat) could be shut down and possibly OSS developers in the US. If it worked, Microsoft would narrow the Linux competition down to just Novell and then, well, goodbye Novell.

Will it happen? I don't know, but the idea is hardly paranoid given Microsoft's anti-competitive past, today's overly-litigious society and the fact that, most likely, every piece of software violates some patent.

23 posted on 12/08/2006 7:14:18 AM PST by Señor Zorro ("The ability to speak does not make you intelligent"--Qui-Gon Jinn)
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To: Golden Eagle
You're obviously confused with Bill Clinton.

It wasn't used in a technological context. It was used in a liberal, it's-cool-to-use-African-words context. From the article:

"Society is important because of Ubuntu."

The definition of Ubuntu (once again, your link): " ubuntu, noun. Humanity or fellow feeling; kindness [Nguni]." Collins English Dictionary

You may or may not know this, but the word existed long before a South African entrepreneur named Mark Shuttleworth branded a distro with the name.

24 posted on 12/08/2006 7:23:39 AM PST by Señor Zorro ("The ability to speak does not make you intelligent"--Qui-Gon Jinn)
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To: Señor Zorro

I think Golden Eagle uses Ubuntu!


25 posted on 12/08/2006 1:24:32 PM PST by Abcdefg
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To: Golden Eagle
IBM's gross income and stock market cap are both down since the SCO lawsuit began.

That was a hope of SCO and its funding source, Microsoft. Damages to IBM's business (including AIX) from SCO's actions are part of IBM's counterclaims.

26 posted on 12/08/2006 4:22:04 PM PST by antiRepublicrat
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To: Señor Zorro; Golden Eagle
You may or may not know this, but the word existed long before a South African entrepreneur named Mark Shuttleworth branded a distro with the name.

This was all explained to GE before when he tried yet again to make Linux a political issue like his partners in crime Richard Stallman and Howard Dean.

27 posted on 12/08/2006 4:26:43 PM PST by antiRepublicrat
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To: antiRepublicrat
like his partners in crime Richard Stallman and Howard Dean.

Your partners in crime, not mine, since you're the one always defending them. LOL at your pathetic absurdity, but as we know leftists have no shame.

28 posted on 12/08/2006 8:44:37 PM PST by Golden Eagle
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To: Abcdefg
I think Golden Eagle uses Ubuntu!

Then your thinker is obviously broke. Foreign leftist crap that Clinton likes, you won't catch me anywhere near it.

29 posted on 12/08/2006 8:48:25 PM PST by Golden Eagle
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To: Golden Eagle
Your partners in crime, not mine

I do not have a philosophical approach to software -- you and Stallman do. I do not politicize software -- you and Howard Dean do. Your buddies, not mine.

30 posted on 12/09/2006 8:04:34 AM PST by antiRepublicrat
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To: Golden Eagle
oreign leftist crap that Clinton likes

Uh, GE, basic comprehension issue here again. We've explained it to you before: It's as if someone named a Linux distro "Mission Accomplished" and you saying Bush loves Linux because he said "Mission Accomplished" in a speech.

31 posted on 12/09/2006 8:13:24 AM PST by antiRepublicrat
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To: antiRepublicrat; Golden Eagle

Oh, I know. But then again, has he learned his lesson on anything, yet?


32 posted on 12/09/2006 9:39:16 AM PST by Señor Zorro ("The ability to speak does not make you intelligent"--Qui-Gon Jinn)
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To: Golden Eagle; Abcdefg; rzeznikj at stout; JRios1968
I think Golden Eagle uses Ubuntu!

Then your thinker is obviously broke. Foreign leftist crap that Clinton likes, you won't catch me anywhere near it.


TRANSLATION: You bet your arse I use Ubuntu, and I use Fedora and Red Hat as well. You all are commies!!! /iggle mode
33 posted on 12/10/2006 1:30:01 PM PST by MikefromOhio (losers are fun to talk too....especially when they don't realize they are losers.....)
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To: Golden Eagle

Thinker?

Iggle, just stop already--seriesly...


34 posted on 12/10/2006 6:37:15 PM PST by rzeznikj at stout (Boldly Going Nowhere...)
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To: Golden Eagle; Abcdefg; rzeznikj at stout; MikefromOhio

Iggle...honestly...don't you get tired of exposing yourself as an idiot every time you log on to FR?


35 posted on 12/10/2006 7:58:37 PM PST by JRios1968 (Tagline wanted...inquire within)
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To: JRios1968

ROFL, someone spending their time defending leftists is hardly anyone to be calling other longtime posters idiots. Exactly what have you brought to the discussion other than an obvious lack of knowledge on these subjects? Can you post a single thing of relevance when it comes to Richard Stallman's "manifesto" and Howard Dean's "open source politics"? Other than you like them?


36 posted on 12/10/2006 8:49:10 PM PST by Golden Eagle
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To: JRios1968

So you support leftists like Stallman, who want all software to be free, including this:

http://politics.slashdot.org/politics/06/12/10/0151206.shtml

And you believe that US companies and individuals should embrace all "open source" products, have them managed by some "community" or government, rather than rely on our existing capitalist industries and markets:

http://hardware.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=06/12/08/2030246

Apparently so, then all you have in your defense is calling me an idiot. LOL


37 posted on 12/10/2006 9:12:53 PM PST by Golden Eagle
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To: Golden Eagle

You assume a lot...of course, when your head is buried that deeply in your rear storage area, it's easy to assume.


38 posted on 12/10/2006 9:31:18 PM PST by JRios1968 (Tagline wanted...inquire within)
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To: JRios1968

Well you're welcome to attempt a comment that indicates some basic knowledge of these subjects, but so far you don't even seem to grok /. And that's speaking your language.


39 posted on 12/10/2006 9:49:57 PM PST by Golden Eagle
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To: Golden Eagle
ROFL, someone spending their time defending leftists is hardly anyone to be calling other longtime posters idiots.

The difference, iggle, is that while all of us that support open source software know what RMS's politics are, we also know that he is basically a figurehead. He's also counter-balanced by people who are not leftists, like Eric Raymond and Bruce Perens.

On the other hand, you rabidly support Bill Gates, also a well-known leftist.

It's called hypocrisy, and it's one of the reasons that we all laugh at you and call you an idiot.

40 posted on 12/12/2006 3:10:44 AM PST by Knitebane (Happily Microsoft free since 1999.)
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