Linux mark extortion

[Posted June 22, 2005 by corbet]

From:		Bruce Perens <bruce-AT-perens.com>
To:		debian-legal-AT-lists.debian.org
Subject:		Linux mark extortion
Date:		Fri, 17 Jun 2005 09:20:20 -0700

The userlinux project has been approached by the Linux Mark Institute
with a demand for money in order to make use of the "Linux" trademark.
Said demand would also apply to the Debian project. I believe their
terms to be non-DFSG-compliant. See http://www.linuxmark.org/ . Debian
has made historicial use of the mark GNU/Linux and has a right to
continue to do so.

    Thanks

    Bruce

to post comments

Use of 'Linux' in project names and difficulty in marketing Linux services

Posted Jun 23, 2005 21:52 UTC (Thu) by lilo (guest, #661) [Link]

It appears to me that more enforcement of the Linux® trademark might tend to make that trademark appear less. Why call your distribution "Foo GNU/Linux" when you can just call it "Foo" and avoid any future issues involving license changes? I'm not sure that's a good or a bad thing, but it might make it a little more difficult to see "what's inside" at first glance.

This could also have a somewhat unfortunate effect on people beginning small businesses involving Linux support. Many of these businesses are started up literally with a a cheap domain, a couple of web pages, an email address and a phone number, by community people who have done informal support and have never been paid contractors up to that point. One of the ways to get the attention of people who need such contract work done is to include "Linux" in your name. Perhaps the welfare of community people making such a transition to paid Linux contract work is not an important consideration.

I understand the need for trademark enforcement. I'm just not sure all of the effects will be positive.

Rob L.