Posted on 02/22/2006 10:03:02 AM PST by Salo
Hold on to your hats! IBM has subpoenaed Microsoft! And Sun! At last, we're getting to the core of the matter. We're going to get to find out the whole story. I'd pay for this. No kidding. Feast your eyes on these and don't skip the topics for deposition:
* Plaintiff IBM's Notice of Service of Subpoenas Duces Tecum - yes, plaintiff for the countercharge...oops, I meant counterclaims * Exhibit A - HP's (deposition set for March 15, 9 AM) * Exhibit B - Baystar's (deposition set for March 16, 9 AM) * Exhibit C - Microsoft's (deposition set for March 14, 9 AM) * Exhibit D - Sun's (deposition set for March 7, 9 AM)
If anyone has time to do a plain text of the topics, I'd appreciate the help. What a day.
I love Sun's. Among other things, IBM would like to have them testify about such matters as "restrictions or prohibitions on Sun employees having access to any UNIX product, including, but not limited to, its source code." And they'd like to hear all about all communications between Sun and SCO since June 28, 2002 (isn't that the date Darl joined SCO as CEO?), including any chats about any software licensing agreements and what Darl said to Scott McNealy in May of 2003 regarding SCO's rights to the UNIX operating system and "discussions of business opportunities between SCO and Sun." Oh, and involvement by Sun in the development of Linux.
IBM would like Baystar to hand over documents about any communication between Baystar and Microsoft regarding SCO, IBM or the SCO v IBM litigation and all documents regarding agreements between Baystar and SCO and all documents regarding Baystar's investment in SCO, and all documents concerning Baystar's knowledge of SCO's business". Say, that should be easy for a "pure financial animal".
Microsoft, Microsoft, Microsoft. Do tell IBM all about any agreements between Microsoft and SCO, and all communications or agreements relating to SCO or this litigation, including all communications between Microsoft and SCO since June 28, 2002, including Darl's communication in May of 2003 "with Steven Ballmer regarding SCO's rights to the UNIX operating system". Oh, and IBM would like to hear about "Microsoft's business strategy regarding Linux", and they'd like to chat about the Caldera antitrust litigation against Microsoft too. Me, too. Me, too. Now about those shredded documents... And finally, they'd like "all communications or agreements relating to SCO or this litigation, including all communications with Baystar, Royal Bank of Canada, and Everyone's Internet, Ltd."
Yoo hoo. PIPE Fairy. Hope you like sunshine.
As for HP, IBM would like to see their contract licensing them to use UNIX. They'd like to know about any restrictions on employees having access to UNIX source code and all documents concerning "any agreements relating to any Hewlett-Packard software product involving Hewlett-Packard and AT&T, USL, Novell, Santa Cruz, Tarantella, or SCO." And any documents regarding any open sourcing of any HP UNIX product and all documejnts concerning the origin of any UNIX source code "publicly disclosed or open sourced by Hewlett-Packard." And they would like to see, or hear about, any agreements between SCO and HP. They'd like to know more about the indemnification plan of HP's also. And this is interesting, number 12:
12. All documents concerning any efforts to ensure or maintain the secrecy or confidentiality of any UNIX source code, know-how, concepts, techniques, or methods, including but not limited to: (a) any rule, policy, practice or procedure relating to the confidentiality or secrecy, or lack of confidentiality or secrecy, of any UNIX source code, know-how, concepts, techniques, or methods; any breach of any such rule, policy, practice or procedure; (c) the use by any person of any UNIX source code, know-how, concepts, techniques,, or methods; and (d) the disclosure or availability of any UNIX source code, know-how, concepts, techniques, or methods to any person.
I begin to think that every question we've had, we will finally get to know the answer.
I see comments indicating that some of you thought discovery was over. Here, from Groklaw's IBM Timeline page, is the schedule:
22-Dec-05 - Final Deadline for Parties to Identify with Specificity All Allegedly Misused Material
27-Jan-06 - Close of All Fact Discovery Except As to Defenses to Claims Relating to Allegedly Misused Material
17-Mar-06 - Close of All Remaining Discovery (i.e., Fact Discovery As to Defenses to Any Claim Relating to Allegedly Misused Material)
As you can see, we're in the part that I've highlighted in red, which is over on March 17. It's all about defenses now. In other words, SCO filed it's list of ha ha allegedly misused material, and now IBM gets to do discovery to establish its defenses. Don't forget the expert witnesses also:
14-Apr-06 - Initial Expert Reports
19-May-06 - Opposing Expert Reports
16-Jun-06 - Rebuttal Expert Reports
10-July-06 - Final Deadline for Expert Discovery
And then, ta da! Dispositive motions.
Pings, please.
Translation please?
Does this mean that IBM thinks they own the rights to UNIX and are going after companies that have not licensed it properly?
Long story - here's the short version:
There is a company called SCO that claims it owns unix and that IBM has violated some contracts by putting unix code in linux. Both of these claims are disputed. IBM looks like it is going to claim that SCO's baseless lawsuits are meant to hinder IBM's business and are secretly being financed by IBM's major competitors, MS and Sun.
My understanding is that this hopes to shine a bright light on SCO's staggering hypocrisy?
Darl only thought he knew what "hardball" meant. *snicker*
Nick, any insights?
Hold on to your seats.....
I'm still trying to figure out what made him think that he could take on IBM's legal department, even *with* support (overt or covert) from M$ and $un.
IBM's legal department has a front bench whose depth is measured in kilometers, and over 50 years of experience with IP law. I cannot conceive of anyone successfully taking on that crew short of a government. And even then...
Good Lord man, try to get control of yourself. The children may still be up.
I think it goes beyond that: I think IBM is going to try and take a chunk of MS's behind for arranging financing for SCO so it could go forward with this lawsuit, which has proven, thus far, to be utterly without merit. With MS's legal issues, it could get very ugly for them if they are actually involved in trying to keep linux off the market in this manner.
IBM is still pissed about the raw deal microsoft handed them over OS2. And to tell the truth, so am I!!
Jack
running Suse 10.0
I think IBM is still POed about DOS. :-)
No, it means IBM plans to crush SCO and its collaborators for their attempted fraud and extortion. Time for some popcorn...
Add me to pings!
One can surely hope!
I am very pro-capitalism. I believe that true market competition should decide prosperity. The more M$ and others engage in subversive, rather than competitive behavior against their competitors, the more I loathe them.
IBM's about the only company in the tech industry that *could* do that, too. They're the 800-pound gorilla carrying the squad automatic weapon in terms of what their legal department and financial resources can do.
I think Microsoft is about to learn about the law of unintended consequences. This isn't a government that they can try to lobby and influence, this is a really pissed off company that's *bigger* than they are, with much deeper pockets and an axe to grind.
I must be missing something... Fraud and extortion?
Can you give us a high level description of the problem?
SCO is "Santa Cruz Operation" right? And they sell UNIX operating systems? Did they steal the source code from IBM and give it to the other companies?
Thanks
IBM is bigger than Microsoft?
Go Big Blue!
Knock all the 'toymakers' off the market and let's get back to a solution that actually works for big business: the MAINFRAME!
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