[Python-Dev] Re: Recent IBM Patent releases (original) (raw)

Terry Reedy tjreedy at udel.edu
Thu Jan 13 00:22:47 CET 2005

"Scott David Daniels" <Scott.Daniels at Acm.Org>

IBM has recently released 500 patents for use in opensource code.

http://www.ibm.com/ibm/licensing/patents/pledgedpatents.pdf "...In order to foster innovation and avoid the possibility that a party will take advantage of this pledge and then assert patents or other intellectual property rights of its own against Open Source Software, thereby limiting the freedom of IBM or any other Open Source developer to create innovative software programs, the commitment not to assert any of these 500 U.S. patents and all counterparts of these patents issued in other countries is irrevocable except that IBM reserves the right to terminate this patent pledge and commitment only with regard to any party who files a lawsuit asserting patents or other intellectual property rights against Open Source Software."

The exception is, of course, aimed for now at SCO and their ridiculous lawsuit against Linux and IBM with respect to Linux.

from another post

I believe our current policy is that the author warrants that the code is his/her own work and not encumbered by any patent.

Without a qualifier such as 'To the best of my knowledge', the latter is an impossible warrant both practically, for an individual author without $1000s to spend on a patent search, and legally. Legally, there is no answer until the statute of limitations runs out or until there is an after-the-fact final answer provided by the court system.

Terry J. Reedy

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