The Community Council is debating this (well, most of it is asleep right now) and we will act on it tomorrow.
I have suggested that we support the signatories and sign the petition on behalf of OpenOffice.org. Best Louis >Forwarded from another list: > >-------- Original Message -------- >Subject: A Call to Action in OASIS >Date: Tue, 22 Feb 2005 09:38:21 -0800 >From: "Lawrence Rosen" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >Reply-To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >Organization: Rosenlaw & Einschlag >To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > >A Call to Action in OASIS > >The free and open source software community has long demanded >that industry standards be freely available to all to implement >without patent or other licensing encumbrances. Open standards >are essential for free software and open source to thrive. > >Now OASIS, a major industry consortium that produces e-business >and Web services standards, has adopted a patent policy that >threatens to undermine our development and licensing model. This >patent policy (available, grouped together with other unrelated >legal issues, in >http://www.oasis-open.org/who/intellectualproperty.php) permits >standards to be based upon so-called "reasonable and >non-discriminatory" patent license terms--terms which invariably >and unreasonably discriminate against open source and free >software to the point of prohibiting them entirely. It would lead >to the adoption of standards that cannot be implemented in open >source and free software, that cannot be distributed under our >licenses. While the policy includes a provision for royalty-free >standards, it is a secondary option, which will have little >effect if a few OASIS members with patents can ensure it is not >used. The OASIS patent policy will encourage large patent holders >to negotiate private arrangements among themselves, locking out >all free software and open source developers. > >This is not a new issue for us. We fought hard for a royalty-free >patent policy in W3C and encouraged that standards organization >to commit its members to open standards. But some W3C member >companies, steadfast opponents of software freedom, moved their >efforts to OASIS. Without consulting the free software/open >source community, they produced a patent policy designed so that >we cannot live with it. > >We ask you to stand with us in opposition to the OASIS patent >policy. Do not implement OASIS standards that aren't open. Demand >that OASIS revise its policies. If you are an OASIS member, do >not participate in any working group that allows encumbered >standards that cannot be implemented in open source and free >software. > >Please send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] to indicate your support. >We will forward your comments to the proper authorities at OASIS. > >If we stand united in opposition to this unacceptable patent >policy, we can persuade OASIS to change it. > >/signed/ >Lawrence Rosen >Bruce Perens >Richard Stallman >Lawrence Lessig >Eben Moglen >Marten Mickos >John Weathersby >John Terpstra >Tim O'Reilly >Tony Stanco >Don Marti >Michael Tiemann >Andrew Aitken >Karen Copenhaver >Doug Levin >Dan Ravicher >Larry Augustin >Mitchell Kapor >Russell Nelson >Guido van Rossum >Daniel Quinlan >Murugan Pal >Stuart Cohen >Danese Cooper >Eric Raymond >Mark Webbink >Ken Coar >Doc Searls >Brian Behlendorf > > > >_______________________________________________ >DMCA-Activists mailing list >[EMAIL PROTECTED] >http://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/dmca-activists > >----- End forwarded message ----- > --------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe, e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] For additional commands, e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
