Microsoft Assembles Patent Arsenal for Longhorn

[Bernard Lang <Bernard.Lang@inria.fr>]

Roadblock ahead


http://slashdot.org/articles/04/05/04/1630256.shtml?tid=109&tid=155&tid=187&tid=99

The heat is on. Inside eweek.com are some remarkable articles: 'You
see, Microsoft is busy patenting everything it can lay its hands on
with all three. In fact, Microsoft is now building up its patent
arsenal, applying for a rather amazing 10 patents a day.
http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,1579765,00.asp

 The idea isn't to ensure that Microsoft makes a fair profit from its
patents; it's to make sure that no one else can write fully compatible
software.' An older article mentions some other patents."


-------

and Microsoft also officially sponsors the EU presidency ... whatever
that means :

http://www.eu2004.ie/sitetools/sponsorship.asp                                ;
  

The presidency is pushing for fast adopting software patents

Might there be a relation.

-------

Ireland holds the EU presidency

Ireland produces little software, but is the largest software exporter
in the world  ?!?!?!

IP taxes are low in Ireland.  And that brings pots of money,
in addition to all that EU subsidized.

Might there be relations.

-------

What are the definitions for :

 - thief
 - corruption

  are these words applicable only to human beings/behavior ?


Bernard


PS  as they all say, patents is no problem for free software

PPS and, as everyone knows, neither Microsoft nor BSA had anything to
do with the drafting of the software patent directive.  Mingorance was
doing that as a hobby.


-- 
         Non aux Brevets Logiciels  -  No to Software Patents
           SIGNEZ    http://petition.eurolinux.org/    SIGN

Bernard.Lang@inria.fr             ,_  /\o    \o/    Tel  +33 1 3963 5644
http://pauillac.inria.fr/~lang/  ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^  Fax  +33 1 3963 5469
            INRIA / B.P. 105 / 78153 Le Chesnay CEDEX / France
         Je n'exprime que mon opinion - I express only my opinion
                 CAGED BEHIND WINDOWS or FREE WITH LINUX