Linux companies sign Microsoft patent protection pacts (LinuxWorld)

[Press] Posted Mar 5, 2009 18:07 UTC (Thu) by cook

Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols investigates possible GPL violations hidden by secret Microsoft FAT patent licenses in a ComputerWorld blog. "So, while we now know there are at least 18 FAT LFN licensees, we still don't know which companies have signed such deals. This information is kept secret by Microsoft and these companies are well-aware of the open-source and legal backlash that could result from admitting to these patent deals. The most important reason why the specifics of these deals are under NDA is that any company doing a patent cross license without covering its downstream recipients, i.e. users, is a direct violation of GPLv2 section 7, and is even more explicitly a GPLv3 violation."

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