Microsoft's first shots in the Patent Wars

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

Begin forwarded message:

From: Randy Fischer <randy.fischer () gmail com>
Date: November 14, 2004 1:11:11 PM EST
To: David Farber <dave () farber net>
Subject: Microsoft's first shots in the Patent Wars
Reply-To: fischer () sacred net

Dave,

For IP if you like:

From the latest Need to Know:

          Last year, Microsoft had 4,000 patents in total. This year,
          they applied for another 3,000. They are now planning at
          least twenty IP cross-licensing deals with other large
          corporations, and have made it clear that they are seeking
          similiar alliances with even their worst enemies. This
          April, they quietly offered a "Royalty Free Protocol License
          Agreement" on their site. It generously allows the license
          of "any intellectual property rights Microsoft may have in
          any or all of [the following] protocols". The 130 protocols
          listed included Appletalk, most of TCP/IP - and everything
          else, from DNS to Zmodem, from DHCP to the port 9 discard
          service (whose sole function is to drop packets). Signing
          this license frees developers from being sued for IP
          infringements by Microsoft, but prevents you from working on
          GPL software (Samba already warns its contributors not to
          sign it). This week, Microsoft indemnified all their
          customers from the legal fallout of any court cases
          revolving around their IP. Which implies there is either
          about to be such a battle: or at least Microsoft wants
          everyone to think there'll be one. Put this week in your
          diaries, ladies and gentlemen of the Internet: you don't
          need Yoda to tell you that the Patent Wars have begun.
          http://www.groklaw.net/article.php?story=20041107154122603
                                - pat groklaw says all you need to know
          http://www.worldwar2database.com/html/phonywar.htm
                                           - or the phony war, at least


IETF MARID's working group has already said  "Thanks,
but no thanks" to a similar licensing scheme MS was
granting for its version of sender-id, see:

http://www.imc.org/ietf-mxcomp/mail-archive/msg04673.html

-Randy Fischer

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