Microsoft v. Free Software
If there was any question about Microsoft’s stance on Free Software (and really, there wasn’t) this ought to settle it. Microsoft is claiming that free software violates 235 of its patents and it wants royalties from distributors and users. It was obvious that this was coming given their recent Novell deal.
The piece is surprisingly pro Free Software and Richard Stallman - something of a rarity these days in even nerdy press much less Money magazine (although they take a stand over saying GNU/Linux, which I guess is a freedom of the press type of move for them). And when I say Free Software, I and the piece are conscious of the distinction between it and Open Source. It talks about how GPLv3 is trying to close the loopholes that Microsoft and Novell exploited to make their deal in the first place and about how in closing those loopholes it will retroactively attempt to negate any of the horrendous effects that deal brings to the table in the fight between Microsoft and Free Software.
The problem with the Novell deal (as if there were only one…) is that big companies are tacitly admitting to the patent infringements by taking Microsoft up on it’s deal with Novell. Companies like Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank and Wal-Mart. That can’t be good for Free Software. I have no idea how this turns out, the worst case scenario is pretty bad for Free Software and I don’t know how likely that case is.
A great illustration of how Microsoft feels is encapsulated in the article’s closing:
If push comes to shove, would Microsoft sue its customers for royalties, the way the record industry has?
“That’s not a bridge we’ve crossed,” says CEO Ballmer, “and not a bridge I want to cross today on the phone with you.”
Meaning, they’re ready to sue their own clients if it came down to it. That’s how backed into a corner Microsoft feels. It’s things like this that make me suspicious of all of Microsoft’s technology and actions - even in the rare occassions where they’ve done something cool. Oh well, I guess we’ll see how this turns out.
UPDATE: Well, I didn’t really discuss the problems with Microsoft not willing to actually say what those 235 violations actually are, forunately others are. The whole things is shades of the SCO attack, I suspect it will turn out about the same.
