Weatherall's Law:
IP in the land of Oz (and more)
 

Friday, January 14, 2005
 
Patents and Open Source

The New York Time are reporting that IBM has come out with a new policy on software patents. They are making 500 of their software patents freely available to anyone working on open-source projects. This is:
  • significant because IBM are a HUGE patent owner - the biggest grantee of patents in 2004 (with 3,248 MORE than their nearest rival);
  • of potentially reduced significance because it is 500 software patents they are offering for free is only a small proportion of their 40,000 world wide patents ...
But yay for IBM anyway. It kind of makes sense given the investments IBM has been making into open source. But it helps, and it adds to the assurances already given by Novell that Novell will use their patents to defend open source.


- Kim, 9:59 AM. [Permalink]
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