Meeting Topic?

[Joshua R. Altemoos]

Hey,

That would be nice but i would be depresses since i could not make it =\



Later Dayz,
Joshua


On Wed, 14 Jan 2004, Mark Robson wrote:

Could Bob M. get one of our lawyer-hosts to talk about
Intellectual Property, Open Source, CopyLeft, and such
things?  Might be interesting to learn about the way
those issues have affected the development of
different distributions?  See below, dated today:

Mark



WSJ:  Intel, IBM to Back New Linux
Fund                                                  
                                                      
      TOP STORY
                
		Intel, IBM to Back
A New Linux Fund

By DAVID BANK
Staff Reporter of The Wall Street Journal


Intel Corp. and International Business MachinesCorp.
are contributing to a new fund to defend Linux users
againstcopyright-infringement lawsuits threatened by
SCOGroup Inc.

The fund is being established by the Open Source
Development Labs, anonprofit industry consortium based
in Beaverton, Ore. It is the latest ina series of
efforts by Linux supporters to counter SCO's moves to
collectlicensing fees from users of the open-source
software.

SCO, based in Lindon, Utah, contends Linux contains
software code thatviolates its rights to Unix, a
proprietary operating system on which Linuxis based.
SCO last year sued IBM, alleging that the computer
makerimproperly contributed copyrighted software code
to Linux. IBM has deniedthe charges.

SCO has sent letters to about 1,500 companies,
demanding licensing feesof about $700 for each server
computer running Linux, but hasn't filed suitagainst a
Linux user. In November SCO said it planned to file
suit againsta "significant" unidentified Linux user
that refused to pay licensefees.

"We want to continue to provide peace of mind to
end-users," said StuartCohen, chief executive of the
Open Source Development Labs, or OSDL. "Wedon't want
to see the momentum or deployment of Linux slowed
down."

OSDL says it has already received pledges of $3
million for the fund,and hopes to raise $10 million.
Neither Intel nor IBM would specify thesize of their
contributions.

Intel, though a longtime partner with MicrosoftCorp.,
also is a big beneficiary of sales of server systems
running therival Linux operating system.

Darl McBride, chief executive of SCO, said in an
interview that thecompany has a "very short list" of
potential legal targets and intends tofile a lawsuit
against a Linux user by February. He said the target
companylikely would be a prominent company that makes
heavy use of Linux and alsoholds a license to Unix
that specifies how that technology may be used.

"No amount of money into a defense fund can protect
somebody if they'rethe guilty party," Mr. McBride
said.

Chuck Molloy, a spokesman for Intel, said the company
was concerned thatSCO has not disclosed specific
details about the alleged infringement. "Itprevents
the Linux community from taking steps to fix the
problem, if infact there are any."

Mr. McBride said more details would be provided in a
court filing Mondayin SCO's lawsuit against IBM in
federal court in Utah. In December, a U.S.magistrate
ordered SCO to produce evidence that IBM's
contributions toLinux violated a license agreement.
"Everybody's been clamoring for us toshow us the
code," Mr. McBride said. "But be careful what you ask
for,because we're going to show that and a lot more."

Mr. Cohen said the new fund complements a separate, $1
million legalfund established in August by Red
HatInc., a major distributor of Linux based in
Raleigh, N.C. That fund isintended to support
developers and distributors of Linux, but not
users.Neither legal fund goes as far as
Hewlett-Packard Co., which inSeptember pledged to
indemnify its Linux customers against potential
legalactions by taking over any litigation and
defending against any claimsagainst customers that
acquired Linux on H-P computers after Oct. 1.

Mr. Cohen said the new fund also would pay legal fees
for the OSDLitself and for Linux inventor Linus
Torvalds, who now works with the group.Both have
received subpoenas in SCO's lawsuit against IBM.

The new fund won't pay legal fees for IBM, said Trink
Guarino, an IBMspokeswoman.
		
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=====

Mark Robson



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