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GPLv3 claims to have Microsoft cornered
The Novell SuSE Linux coupons that Microsoft is selling, make the company a Linux distributor and subject it to the GPL, claims the Free Software Foundation. If true, this would force Microsoft to provide a free license to its patent portfolio to all open source users and developers.
The Microsoft-Novell deal could turn out to be a Trojan horse for Microsoft.
The big question is if Microsoft is a software distributor when it sells coupons. The whole deal was designed to prevent it from distributing actual code, but the FSF now claims that it "clearly" is.
This probably will have to be tested in court, but if found to be true, Microsoft opened the gates to heaven (or hell, depending on your point of view) when they signed the Novell partnership last November. Because all users and developers of open source software now will receive a free licence for Microsoft's intellectual property. Including the 235 patents that allegedly are violated by several open source applications.
June 1, 2007 at 01:18 AM | Permalink
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