105 lines
4.9 KiB
HTML
105 lines
4.9 KiB
HTML
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
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<html newsdate="2018-10-23">
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<version>1</version>
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<head>
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<title>
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Free Software changing Microsoft's patent strategy
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</title>
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</head>
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<body>
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<h1>Free Software changing Microsoft's patent strategy</h1>
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<p>In October Microsoft took a big step concerning its
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software patents by joining the <a href="https://lotnet.com">LOT
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Network</a> (LOT stands for "License on Transfer") and the <a
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href="https://www.openinventionnetwork.com/">Open Invention Network
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(OIN)</a>. This is a clear sign of progress on the long road to handing
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control of technology to the people, and the FSFE encourages Microsoft
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to take additional steps in this direction.</p>
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<p>The Free Software Foundation Europe (FSFE) works towards a world
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where software does what software users want it to do, and believes that
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everybody should be able to participate in the development and
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distribution of software, if they are interested to do so. Since its
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foundation, the FSFE has <a href="/activities/swpat/swpat.html">raised
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awareness about the dangers of software patents</a>, which among other
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things add legal and financial risks to commercial Free Software
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software development. In short, software patents are harming users,
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developers, and society at large.</p>
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<p>Since the 2000s, Microsoft has used software patents to slow down
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Free Software adoption in businesses and public administration by
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claiming patent infringement of important Free Software components and
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taking billions of dollars from Free Software re-distributors, including
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companies selling phones with Android systems.</p>
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<p>However, in recent years Microsoft has published non-core software
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under Free Software licenses, purchased Github (a platform used a lot
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for Free Software development), and communicated more positively about
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Free Software. Now, Microsoft joins LOT and the OIN, two organisations
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that work to solve the problems created by software patents.</p>
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<p><a href="https://lotnet.com/how-lot-works/">LOT strives</a> to
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protect members against so-called "non-practicing entities", which are
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companies that operate by extracting money from others through patents
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that they hold, despite not developing products or services of their own
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based on these patents. Non-practicing entities are not interested in
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any cross-licensing of patents.</p>
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<p>The OIN works to protect a defined set of Free Software technologies
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from patent litigation. More than 2.600 members of the OIN have signed a
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non-aggression agreement that covers a defined list of Free Software
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packages called the <a
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href="https://www.openinventionnetwork.com/joining-oin/linux-system/">"Linux
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system definition"</a>. In a nutshell, this means that under the "Linux
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system definition" all members of the OIN have a license for the patents
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of all the others members. However, any member, including Microsoft, can
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withdraw from the OIN agreement within 30 days.</p>
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<p>It must be emphasized that joining LOT and the OIN does not
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automatically solve the general problem of software patents, nor some
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specific patent threats. Indeed, Microsoft has neither dismantled nor
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freely licensed its entire patent portfolio, and would therefore still
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be able to sue companies and projects not covered by LOT's and the OIN's
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agreements.</p>
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<p>The FSFE nevertheless welcomes Microsoft's steps, and encourages them
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to continue in this direction. We join our sister organisation, the Free
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Software Foundation (FSF), in <a
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href="https://www.fsf.org/news/fsf-statement-on-microsoft-joining-the-open-invention-network">their
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statement</a> that Microsoft should:</p>
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<ul>
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<li>"make a clear, unambiguous statement that it has ceased all patent
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infringement claims on the use of Linux in Android";</li>
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<li>"work within the OIN to expand the definition of what it calls the
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"Linux System" so that the list of packages protected from patents
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actually includes everything found in a GNU/Linux system"; and</li>
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<li>"use the past patent royalties extorted from Free Software to fund
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the effective abolition of all patents covering ideas in software".</li>
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</ul>
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<p>The FSFE will continue to support companies in their efforts to use
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and develop more Free Software, and to end the problem of software
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patents.</p>
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<p><blockquote>"The change of Microsoft's approach shows how crucial
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persistence and patience are on the long road to software freedom. For
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decades, thousands of Free Software contributors have explained the
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advantages of software freedom to individual users and developers,
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companies, and the public sector. Over time, this created more and more
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demand for Free Software, a demand which companies wanting to stay
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relevant in the future cannot ignore. To achieve the next steps, users
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should continue to demand Free Software, and developers should use their
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power to demand from potential employees that they show a strong
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interest to work with Free Software", says Matthias Kirschner, President
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of the FSFE.</blockquote></p>
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</body>
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<tags>
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<tag key="front-page"/>
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<tag key="swpat">Patents</tag>
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</tags>
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</html>
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