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| Open Invention Network Begins Stockpiling Patents - UPDATED |
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Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 02:41 AM EST
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I was going to put this Wall St. Journal story in News Picks, but then I decided it is so important, it belongs here, so everyone sees it:Five big backers of Linux are funding an effort to buy up related software patents, the latest in a series of efforts to reduce legal risks that could impede the wider use of the operating system.
A new nonprofit company, called Open Invention Network, is receiving an undisclosed amount of money from International Business Machines Corp., Sony Corp., Philips Electronics NV, Novell Inc. and Red Hat Inc. It plans to buy Linux-related patents, offering royalty-free licenses to companies and individuals that pledge not to assert their own patents against the network's other licensees. . . .
The Open Innovation Network plans to act as an alternative to the trolls. "We are going to be out there, hopefully buying the patents that they would try to acquire and taking them off the table," said Jerry Rosenthal, the company's chief executive.
The network's initial assets will include a collection of patents that were purchased for $15.5 million by a subsidiary of Novell from Commerce One Inc., an electronic-commerce company that filed for bankruptcy-court protection last year. (The New York Times has the story now too.) And here's the new company's home page. Thank you, Novell, for buying up Commerce One Inc.'s patents. I still have conversations sometimes about patent pools, and I still come across folks who don't think they have any value. I always try my best to explain why I think they do, and I'm very happy to see that IBM, Red Hat, Sony, Philips and Novell not only agree but are doing something massive about it. The patent threat is real, and GNU/Linux needs protection. Individual FOSS developers can't afford to join the Rich Guy's Patent Club and do cross-licensing deals, so the only legal option for them is to pay royalties, and that's a mighty quick way to ruin the value of GNU/Linux. Let's not even talk about what happens to the GPL if the globe is papered with hostile patents. Companies who see the danger are stepping forward. It's not the total solution, because patent law currently is so noxious, but it's a vital piece. The real solution is for patents and software to get a divorce on the grounds of incompatibility. However, since that is not likely to happen in the US any time soon, ideas like this can create a safer environment for FOSS development. So if you hear about a company going out of business and you know they have Linux-related patents, tell Open Invention Network, or email me, and I'll pass it along. Don't just leave a comment though. The idea is to buy up such patents before others can. Imagine a SCO with patents, and you'll understand the urgency, particularly when you remember who funded SCO's little adventures.
UPDATE: Here's the Open Invention Network's press release. The most significant statement, to my eyes, is Red Hat's Mark Webbink's comment: "By providing this unique collaborative framework, Open Invention Network will set open source developers free to do what they do best -- innovate," said Mark Webbink, senior vice president at Red Hat. "At the same time, Open Invention Network extends to distributors and users of open source software freedom from concern about software patents." Here's the complete press release:
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OPEN INVENTION NETWORK FORMED TO PROMOTE LINUX AND SPUR INNOVATION GLOBALLY THROUGH ACCESS TO KEY PATENTS
Investors Include IBM, Novell, Philips, Red Hat, and Sony
New York (November 10, 2005) - Open Invention Network (OIN), a company that has and will acquire patents and offer them royalty-free to promote Linux and spur innovation globally, was launched today with financial support from IBM, Novell, Philips, Red Hat, and Sony. The company, believed to be the first of its kind, is creating a new model where patents are openly shared in a collaborative environment and used to facilitate the advancement of applications for, and components of, the Linux operating system.
"Open collaboration is critical for driving innovation, which fuels global economic growth. Impediments to collaboration on the Linux operating system seriously jeopardize innovation. A new model of intellectual property management for Linux must be established to maintain advances in software innovation - regardless of the size or type of business or organization," said Jerry Rosenthal, chief executive officer at Open Invention Network. The company will foster an open, collaborative environment that stimulates advances in Linux - helping ensure the continuation of global innovation that has benefited software vendors, customers, emerging markets and investors, among others.
Patents owned by Open Invention Network will be available on a royalty-free basis to any company, institution or individual that agrees not to assert its patents against the Linux operating system or certain Linux-related applications.
Open Invention Network believes that creating a new system to manage and ensure access to key patents for the Linux operating system will have a significant economic impact. According to International Data Corporation, the worldwide Linux business is expected to grow 25.9 percent annually, doubling from $20 billion in 2005 to more than $40 billion in 2008.
"Open Invention Network is not focused on income or profit generation with our patents, but on using them to promote a positive, fertile ecosystem for the Linux operating system and to drive innovation and choice into the marketplace," said Mr. Rosenthal. "We intend to spur innovation in IT and across industries by helping software developers focus on what they do best - developing great Linux-related software with greater assurance about intellectual property issues."
Among Open Invention Network's initial patent holdings is a set of business-to-business electronic commerce patents that were purchased from Commerce One by JGR, a subsidiary of Novell.
For more information go to www.openinventionnetwork.com.
Investor Statements
IBM
"The formation of Open Invention Network signals a growing movement where companies today are looking beyond their own organizational boundaries," said Jim Stallings, vice president of intellectual property and open standards at IBM. "They are strategically sharing their intellectual property and building broader industry partnerships in order to accelerate innovation and drive new economic growth."
Novell
"We are proud to be a founding member of the Open Invention Network," said Jack Messman, CEO of Novell. "While Novell has been a major contributor to the open source community and has shown its commitment to promoting and fostering the adoption of open source and open standards, this initiative raises our leadership to the highest level. With this new initiative, users of open source software will have access to a broad set of technologies that will help foster an even more robust community of developers, customers, business partners and investors. This is a breakthrough idea whose time has come."
Philips
"Philips is actively involved in the creation and funding of Open Invention Network because we believe that OIN will make the Linux platform more attractive for users. This will stimulate developers to focus their resources on creating high-value, innovative software on this open platform," said Ruud Peters, chief executive officer of Philips Intellectual Property & Standards. "We believe that this initiative will widely boost the use of the Linux platform and its applications."
Red Hat
"By providing this unique collaborative framework, Open Invention Network will set open source developers free to do what they do best -- innovate," said Mark Webbink, senior vice president at Red Hat. "At the same time, Open Invention Network extends to distributors and users of open source software freedom from concern about software patents."
Sony
"Linux is clearly an important technology for Sony and the global community in general," said Yoshihide Nakamura, SVP, Corporate Executive of Sony Corporation. "We believe Linux and open standards will provide companies with more options for the development of innovative products. We have and will continue to support initiatives like Open Invention Network that promote a positive environment for these developments."
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| Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 02:52 AM EST |
Well, what if someone starts filing patents now and offering them for sale?
It sounds like money press.
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| Authored by: jbb on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 02:56 AM EST |
Clickable links, HTML mode.
---
Anyone who has the power to make you believe absurdities has the power to make
you commit injustices.[ Reply to This | # ]
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- SonyDRM news. - Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 04:01 AM EST
- Sony RootKit -- illegitimate Older Brother to 'Trustable Computing' - Authored by: darkonc on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 05:06 AM EST
- A thought: The recording industry has just borrowed Darl's footgun. - Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 05:07 AM EST
- SonyDRM news. - Authored by: luvr on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 05:40 AM EST
- SonyDRM news. - Authored by: prayforwind on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 05:45 AM EST
- SonyDRM news. - Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 06:50 AM EST
- SonyDRM news. - Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 06:57 AM EST
- SonyDRM news - more information - Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 07:39 AM EST
- News about the lawsuits is on the BBC now - Authored by: RogerB on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 08:17 AM EST
- First Trojan using Sony DRM spotted - Authored by: NetArch on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 09:26 AM EST
- Well, you could just use Linux (n/t) - Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 11:10 AM EST
- The **ONLY** real way to stop this - Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 05:26 PM EST
- OT - Corporate Antivirus - Authored by: Jimbob0i0 on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 06:07 AM EST
- XCP® Content Management - Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 06:54 AM EST
- OT here please - Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 07:34 AM EST
- Reminder: Library of Congress DMCA exemption review -Written comments due by December 1, 2005 - Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 07:45 AM EST
- Flash - Please get rid of it Open Invention Network - Authored by: SpaceLifeForm on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 02:27 PM EST
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| Authored by: jbb on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 02:58 AM EST |
So PJ can find them all in one place.
---
Anyone who has the power to make you believe absurdities has the power to make
you commit injustices.[ Reply to This | # ]
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- Corrections here - Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 06:55 AM EST
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| Authored by: SimonK on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 03:21 AM EST |
| What would be a good solution IMHO would be a new legal construct.
I call
it a "Non-Patent"
-You can get a Non-Patent for everything you can get a
Patent now.
-A Non-Patent should be available at a fixed affordable cost
(for instance 500$/€)
-You obtain no rights through a non-patent but
everything that is covered by a Non-Patent can not be patented by someone
else
Greetings from Germany
Simon Klaiber
Private - Business
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| Authored by: eamacnaghten on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 03:51 AM EST |
| The FOSS community, whom I like to consider myself a member, was in a way very
fortunate that SCO did what they did.
SCO was (is?) a mouse that roared. I
am aware the saga is not over yet, but I think it is unlikely that they will be
successful in causing harm. To thank for that we have the fact that SCO went
into war relatively unarmed, with no patents and, so it appears, no copyrights
for the IP they were claining. Also Darl's performance to the peanut gallery
hardly helped their cause.
What SCO has achieved is a wake-up call. Their
shenanegins have resulted in the community organizing itself better to deal with
things like this (thanks PJ for your inspired leadership here, by the way).
Although we are not in a massively strong position, we are a fair bit better
prepared for the oncoming battle than we would have been without SCO.
Web
Sig: Eddy Currents [ Reply to This | # ]
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| Authored by: darkonc on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 04:56 AM EST |
| Open Invention Network ...
OINk -- because
software patents are a pig. ---
Powerful, committed communication. Touching
the jewel within each person and bringing it to life.. [ Reply to This | # ]
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| Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 05:34 AM EST |
This action only funds patent attourneys and lawyers in the software patent
field.
It is an extremely expensive and rather short-sighted way to NOT get rid of
software patents.[ Reply to This | # ]
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| Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 05:51 AM EST |
"That is that a patent has been discovered that allows Apple to protect the
installation of the Mac OS X to just Apple-produced hardware. The patent
describes a process whereby users would be able to load one of three operating
systems as their primary OS and then load a secondary operating system as their
secondary OS."
http://www.theinquirer.net/?article=27559
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| Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 06:08 AM EST |
| What is the policy of this Open Invention Network regarding the BSDs? If they
explicitly limit themselves to "Linux" and not something like "anything
compliant with the OSI
Open Source Definition" it is... ehm... rather useless. Even for software
you want to write that runs on Linux (because it is not Linux). [ Reply to This | # ]
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| Authored by: TonyW on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 07:29 AM EST |
| You don't have to imagine it. I think we can just look at the example of Jerome Lemelson, the so-called patent
king.
See also his entry in wikipedia. [ Reply to This | # ]
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| Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 07:31 AM EST |
Someone at IBM patents something basic like "systems that interconnect via
ethernet TCP/IP" and put it in the patent pool. IBM contacts microsoft to
negoatiate over taking their patented processes out of their version of XML in
exchange for not enforcing the patent against Microsft products. What is
internet access worth to Microsoft?
What would really be intersting would be to reverse engineer the various closed
source OS options to see how many patent pool patents they are violating.[ Reply to This | # ]
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| Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 07:43 AM EST |
I've got the network version of Grisoft AVG, works fine and give central
control. Was about £4 per seat per year for a 2 year 50 use license.[ Reply to This | # ]
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| Authored by: blacklight on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 08:18 AM EST |
If the owner of a patent sues everyone and his brother for patent infringement,
I'd say that the patent had been improperly awarded in the first place, because
said patent obviously failed the non-obviousness test - the
"discovery" is obvious to everyone in the industry but not to the dim
bulbs of the USPTO.
---
Know your enemies well, because that's the only way you are going to defeat
them. And know your friends even better, just in case they become your enemies.[ Reply to This | # ]
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| Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 09:14 AM EST |
I followed the link because it would be a treat to see the Wall Street Journal
use the phrase "patent troll" in a news article. Unfortunately, they
rewrote the article since PJ quoted it, and the phrase is no longer there.[ Reply to This | # ]
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| Authored by: Prototrm on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 09:25 AM EST |
This is a great move on the part of some very big companies, and I welcome it.
And yet, I am a bit concerned that, with all these powerhouse firms moving to
put a band-aid on the patent problems in the United States, that a genuine
solution -- banning software patents -- will now be even more unlikely than
before.
This will not, for example, solve situations like the Eolas patents, where you
have a single person with absolutely nothing to loose but Venture Capital (i.e.,
not his own money) when he sues big companies for Patent Infringement. Big
companies usually fear retribution from their targets, because they make
something (usually lots of somethings) that may violate the patent of another.
That's why when a big company sues for patent infringement, people refer to it
as the Nuclear Option. It can get really messy. A company that generates nothing
but patent lawsuits fears none of this.
This kind of action should reduce the risk of patent suits against FOSS, but
it's not a solution to the problem. By creating the illusion of a solution,
these companies may have actually done more harm than good.[ Reply to This | # ]
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| Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 11:46 AM EST |
Since the patent problem is a direct result of the courts expanding the scope of
patentability until it broke, when will the courts realize their rulings are
unconstitutional because they inhibit innovation?
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| Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 12:13 PM EST |
The website of the Open Invention Network uses a proprietary plugin as the only
way to view/enter their website. There is no "skip intro" link. So if
you don't have Shockwave Flash(tm), or don't want to enable it for security
reasons, you're out of luck.[ Reply to This | # ]
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| Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 12:31 PM EST |
Wow! Just imagine if Novell went and placed any and all patents it owns in unix
under OIN. That would really, really have an interesting effect, I think.
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| Authored by: rdc3 on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 12:34 PM EST |
If OIN doesn't buy up patents, there are
plenty of other
outfits that will.
Since we don't know what stance those
other outfits will
take towards open source, it is much safer to have OIN
buy
them.
The entry of OIN may drive up the price of patent pools.
This
could be a good thing, making life more costly for
patent trolls.
[ Reply to This | # ]
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| Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 12:51 PM EST |
Microsoft, IBM Lead Group To Consolidate Linux Patents
By W. David
Gardner, TechWeb.com
A sextet of tech giants linked up on Thurs to
promote Linux globally, with the unveiling of a new company called the Open
Invention Network (OIN).
The six are Microsoft, IBM, Novell, Philips,
Red Hat and Sony.
.....
HAHAHAHAHA! The reporter here
made a huge mistake here...
http://www.techweb.com/wir
e/software/173601498
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| Authored by: tknarr on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 01:17 PM EST |
The only problem I see with this is it's limited protection. The OIN provides
protection against patent attack by companies that actually make things which
might infringe on patents in the pool. The big threat, though, is from "IP"
companies whose only asset and product is the patents they hold and their
license-fee claims. They don't make anything, so they can't infringe on your
patents. A patent pool provides no protection from them. The only protection
will be for them to cause enough problems for large companies who actually do
make things that those companies finally realize that software and
business-method patents are more of a threat to them than an asset. [ Reply to This | # ]
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| Authored by: kutulu on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 02:52 PM EST |
*sigh*
It's pretty bad when not even the entire company can decide wether or not to be
evil with regards to their IP.
On the one hand, you have Sony (the tech side) taking steps like this to make
sure their IP is available for use by those who need it. On the other hand, you
have Sony (the music side) telling us that it's perfectly acceptable to
compromise my PC with a hidden root kit before I'm allowed to listen to the
music I just bought, becase "most people won't notice".
So do we cheer them or jeer them? I want to reward their good behavior by
purchasing stuff from them, but I want to punish their horrible behavior by
boycotting them. I wish they'd just make up their mind.
--Kutulu[ Reply to This | # ]
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| Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 03:10 PM EST |
This sounds like MAD where the cost of retaliation for being
the one to fire the first shot is too much to bear and makes
the whole effort moot. The weapons are there but no one
will use them. Not a great method but considering human
nature, a realistic one. Probably will work until it
becomes unnecessary.
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| Authored by: tizan on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 03:20 PM EST |
Could they open these patents by giving a license GPL style...
that is all codes written using these patents have to be
distributed with a GPL compliant license.
Just a thought.....
---
tizan: What's the point of knowledge if you don't pass it on. Its like storing
all your data on a 1-bit write only memory ![ Reply to This | # ]
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| Authored by: star-dot-h on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 03:21 PM EST |
| For starters, they could try getting these:
http://www.iponz.govt.nz
/ ---
Free software on every PC on every desk [ Reply to This | # ]
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| Authored by: whig on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 03:57 PM EST |
What's to stop a company (Microsoft, for instance) from mounting an attack on
Linux / FOSS by selling one or more patents they would use against us to a pure
(so-called) "IP" firm, which has no other business that might require
a patent license from OIN or anyone else?[ Reply to This | # ]
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| Authored by: adobriyan on Thursday, November 10 2005 @ 04:01 PM EST |
> Patents owned by Open Invention Network will be available on a royalty-free
> basis to any company, institution or individual that agrees not to assert
> its patents against the Linux operating system or certain Linux-related
> applications.
Does anybody understands if this applies to Linux kernel or
Linux kernel + GNU stuff?[ Reply to This | # ]
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| Authored by: Anonymous on Friday, November 11 2005 @ 02:52 AM EST |
The first thing that struck me as I was reading this is that, even if the pool
is effective and helps reduce the threat of patent lawsuits, nobody will notice.
The only evidence of its effectiveness would be in a relative lack of lawsuits.
And even if such a reduction could be measured as such, it would be very
difficult to conclusively show a cause-and-effect relationship between it and
the patent pool itself.
So I'm afraid that the detractors of such schemes will always be able to say
"it doesn't work", simply because it's almost impossible to determine
if it actually *is* working. It's a bit like putting little security warning
stickers on all the windows of your house. If nobody attempts to break in, is
it because of the stickers, or simply because nobody has targeted your house
(for whatever other reason)?
(For the record, I think it's a great idea myself, because it's about the only
realistic defensive action that can be taken outside of abolishing software
patents completely.)
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The poster formerly known as m(_ _)m[ Reply to This | # ]
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| Authored by: Anonymous on Friday, November 11 2005 @ 08:01 AM EST |
It speaks volumes about the wonderful patent system that a group like this is
even needed.
I hope the government is watching and learning what the the patent system is
doing to software.
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