__/ [ Mark Kent ] on Saturday 24 February 2007 08:40 \__
> Roy Schestowitz <newsgroups@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> espoused:
>> Microsoft warns of danger to digital music after record $1.5bn fine
>>
>> ,----[ Quote ]
>>| Microsoft was yesterday fined a record $1.52bn (£777m) for
>>| infringing a digital music patent which could throw into doubt
>>| the future of the digital music industry.
>> `----
>>
>> http://business.guardian.co.uk/story/0,,2019691,00.html?gusrc=rss&feed=1
>>
>> What a drama queen. One can just use Ogg Vorbis, which is Open Source and
>> royalty free. The big winner in this lawsuit is OSS/Linux, assuming it
>> doesn't lead to retaliation/precedence. During the trial, even Microsoft
>> (perhaps foolishly) admitted that software patents make no sense.
>
> Do you have a reference for that remark? It seems a very important one
> to me.
>
> Of course, the real issue is that both Lucent and Alcatel were in poor
> shape before buyout, and having completed the boyout, they're arguably
> in worse shape, as they will now have realised that most of the
> "synergies" they were going to get actually will not materialise. It's
> hardly surprising that they'll try anything to raise some cash.
In Beta News, IIRC, there was some very extensive coverage of this. It
involved the judge asking (maybe with a bit of anger) if 2 plus 2 equals 4
can be patented. I also saw something in Groklaw, but I can't remember where
it pointed. Additionally, Doug posted the following some time ago.
,----[ Quote ]
| MR. OLSON [For Microsoft]: The '580 patent is a program, as I understand
| it, that's married to a computer, has to be married to a computer in
| order to be patented.
|
| JUSTICE SCALIA: You can't patent, you know, on-off, on-off code in the
| abstract, can you?
|
| MR. OLSON: That's correct, Justice Scalia.
`----
http://www.supremecourtus.gov/oral_arguments/argument_transcripts/05-1056.pdf
Add this to your bookmarks. All these 'exhibits' could one day strike
Microsoft back in the rear. I also have thousands of files from the Iowa
trial on my external hard-drive. I imagine that someone out there will soon
register a domain name and host the whole bunch... maybe /several/ people
will do this and compete... they could call it..... "The MS Files"... very
much like the Frasier Files (transcripts of all episodes) or the X-Files.
Open the drawer and pull out a fraud a day... front page to feature "crime
of the day", just like "word of the day"...
Microsoft thought that settling the case would have everything vanish, but
they were wrong. The only thing they achieved, quite unfortunately, is a
halt to /more/ evidence resurfacing...
--
~~ Best wishes
Roy S. Schestowitz | Never awaking askew, no matter what they ask you
http://Schestowitz.com | RHAT GNU/Linux ¦ PGP-Key: 0x74572E8E
12:00pm up 32 days 12:18, 8 users, load average: 0.34, 0.63, 0.42
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