Re: [Patents] Microsoft to pay .5 bn for license to extend web-browser

[<xdrudis@tinet.org>]

> One hope is that, as a result of this kind of offensive cases, 
> Microsoftwould finally realize how bad software patents are and 
> revert to their
> earlier (at least Bill Gates') critical view of software patents, 
> but...maybe that is to hope for too much.
>

It is true that patent parasites may cause several problems for 
monopolists at different times, but then, I wonder how having to pay,
say, 1% of cash reserves (assuming it finally has to pay) could be 
enough to outweight the benefit to have software patents to stop
competitors who can't pay so much but can grow to be a nuisance. I guess
it depends on how 
many parasites attack how often, but if I was a parasite I wouldn't 
want to kill my host (my cash cow). Or maybe I would? Who knows?

I would be much more worried than MS if I hadn't such a huge pile of
money to pay because I was still using my cash to grow/compete with
monopolists  and I needed every 1% of it. 

But it's not only about who loses the money. It's also about who gets
it. Do we want a system were people earn money by offering good
solutions to customers, or by gambling at which problems will be people
solving in the next 20 years and how much they'll be worth, and then
blocking them?.