...and if SCO is right...?
Posted May 16, 2003 20:02 UTC (Fri) by
dkite (guest, #4577)
Parent article:
...and if SCO is right...?
I'll make a wild prediction:
This case will not be settled in court in my lifetime.
I'd make a bet, but there would be no way for me to collect.
Did the previous unix legal battle ever get settled in court? I don't think so. The
longer the procedure dragged on, the more muddled the whole thing got, and the
more the plaintiffs were about to lose. This one will be the same. I don't think this
is about cut and paste code, rather trademark and trade secret stuff, which is
rather ephemeral at the best of times. There are literally thousands of individual
companies, consultants and developers that have a stake in this thing, each with
an intelligent case to make. Every claim that SCO will make can be and will be
countered by some argument with value.
How much do the lawyers get? 1/3 of a billion? How long will that last? How long
can they last without cash flow? Isn't that what the latest volley is about,
threatening users, some of which will call back and say "how much, who to?".
Most free/open projects respond to IP problems by quickly pruning anything even
remotely controversial.
Derek
(
Log in to post comments)