Re: Article: IBM wants to "clean up the license" of Linux

Robert Kiesling (kiesling@ix.netcom.com)
Sun, 20 Dec 98 18:09 EST

> the generic idea would be to create positive discrimination laws for free
> software: to make new laws to protect free software, acknowledging the
> fact that free software is in the public interest, thus free software
> deserves extra protection like academic research does: eg. patent law does
> not apply... (time to call your congressman, it's easy :)

It doesn't work that way in the U.S. There are no special protections
for academic research, and in some cases researchers have less freedom
over their work, if the university considers them to be "under
contract."

But that's off topic. IBM would likely never be able to justify to
its shareholders somethin as speculative as changing patent laws for
free software.

-- 




Robert Kiesling
kiesling@ix.netcom.com




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