IBM patents : good or evil ?

[Jeroen Dekkers]

At Tue, 11 Jan 2005 10:15:32 +0100,
Simo Sorce wrote:
> 
> On Tue, 2005-01-11 at 09:43 +0100, Jerome Alet wrote:
> > Hi all,
> > 
> > In the light of the recent BIG event of IBM patents being
> > made available to free software developpers, I'm wondering :
> > 
> >         - couldn't this be used by the pro-patent lobby to
> >           make software patents become a reality in Europe ?
> > 
> > any comment ?
> 
> I see it the opposite way, anti-patent lobby can easily say: see IBM the
> most important patent owner and early patent adopter in the information
> science world has recognized that patents are effectively a threat to
> one of the most important way of producing software today, and because
> of that they released them to FS producers.
> 
> But ultimately I think that anybody can twist the meaning unless IBM
> explicitly tell the political reason that made them do the move.

I think those are pretty clear. See also the following
NoSoftwarePatents.com press release
(http://www.nosoftwarepatents.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=288):

NOSOFTWAREPATENTS.COM CRITICIZES IBM FOR "DIVERSIONARY TACTICS",
"AGGRESSIVE PATENT LOBBYING" AND "SQUEEZING" IN CONNECTION WITH IBM's
REPORTED RELEASE OF 500 PATENTS FOR OPEN-SOURCE USE

Munich (11 January 2005). Media reports appeared last night acording
to which IBM now allows open-source software developers to use 500 of
its approximately 40,000 patents. Florian Mueller, campaign manager of
NoSoftwarePatents.com, commented on IBM's move:

[start quote]

Recently IBM made an unsubstantial non-aggression promise with respect
to Linux, and now they show off again. It's just diversionary
tactics. Let's put this into perspective: We're talking about roughly
1% of IBM's worldwide patent portfolio. They file that number of
patents in about a month's time.

In Europe, IBM is a driving force behind the extension of the scope of
patentability with respect to software. If IBM wants to assume the
role of a post-Christmas benefactor, they'd better stop their
aggressive patent lobbying in the EU and their shameless squeezing of
small and medium-sized companies with that IBM "patent tax". Let's
take it from there. We can still talk about some kind of patent
pittance after that.

[end quote]



Jeroen Dekkers