Microsoft claims Linux stole 230 patents

By Nick Farrell
MICROSOFT’S top lawyer seems to be hinting that Vole is planning to do a SCO and sue Linux out of the market for nicking its patents. In an interview with Fortune magazine, Brad Smith claims that free and open-source software violates more than 230 of Microsoft’s patents. The Linux kernel violates 42 Microsoft patents, while its user interface and other design elements infringe on a further 65.

Open Office.org is accused of infringing 45, along with 83 more in other free and open-source programs, he said. It seems that rather than go through the protracted problems of court battles, our intrepid Vole has a cunning plan which involves “encouraging” large tech companies that depend on Linux to ink patent deals.

So far that includes the pact with Novell, Samsung and Fuji Xerox. Vole has been having a quiet word with Red Hat, but not reach a deal yet. It remains open how long Vole will take before it starts encouraging more people into such pacts with threats of legal action.

Carrying a bit stick is not really worth the effort unless you try to use it on at least one company. Fortune seems to think that it is only a matter of time before Microsoft gets nasty with the companies that do not stump up with an agreement. Some of the big Open Sourcing companies have been stockpiling intellectual property as part of the Open Invention Network with the idea of taking down Microsoft if it tries it.

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