Dan Shearer wrote: > GPLv3 was released the week Eben was in Scotland, and some of his > comments were directed specifically towards The Monopoly. Microsoft has > now responded, the first time it has ever made a corporate-level > statement that I can recall specifically targetting free software. In > summary, even Microsoft is admitting the Novell deal is over: > > http://www.groklaw.net/article.php?story=20070705205728953 > > Microsoft must surely know that this will drive GPLv3 adoption like nothing > else -- but they have no choice because if they cover any GPLv3 code with > their > joint Novell certificates then their entire patent portfolio they were > offering > cover for to Novell customers falls open for perpetual reuse by you and me and > any other user of GPLv3 work: > > If, pursuant to or in connection with a single transaction or arrangement, > you > convey, or propagate by procuring conveyance of, a covered work, and grant a > patent license providing freedom to use, propagate, modify or convey a > specific > copy of the covered work to any of the parties receiving the covered work, > then > the patent license you grant is automatically extended to all recipients of > the > covered work and works based on it. > > Eben predicted that Microsoft would have no room to move back in May, when he > said: > > You have been watching for months as Microsoft gave away these coupons -- > which were supposed to be valuable to Microsoft, and for which it paid a > lot of > money -- as though the coupons themselves were hot, as indeed they are. All > of > this giving away coupons activity by Microsoft is meaningless and useless. > The > coupons have no expiration date, and Microsoft can be sure that some coupons > will be turned into Novell in return for software after the effective date > of > GPL 3. Once that has happened, patent defenses will, under the license, have > moved out into the broad community and be available to anybody who Microsoft > should ever sue for infringement. > > This is a very interesting moment. >
Very. -- Kind Regards, Gavin Henry. Managing Director. T +44 (0) 1224 279484 M +44 (0) 7930 323266 F +44 (0) 1224 824887 E [EMAIL PROTECTED] Open Source. Open Solutions(tm). http://www.suretecsystems.com/ _______________________________________________ Scottish mailing list [email protected] https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/scottish
