Microsoft excludes competitors with OOXML patent license? http://www.noooxml.org/forum/t-114765/microsoft-excludes-competitors-with-ooxml-patent-license Posts in the discussion thread "Microsoft excludes competitors with OOXML patent license?" - ECMA has just published two documents related to the patent licensing of ECMA376v1 and ECMA376v2. Microsoft promises to give a patent license under so called "reasonable terms". Reasonable for whom? http://www.noooxml.org/forum/t-114765#post-341023 Re: Microsoft excludes competitors with OOXML patent license? http://www.noooxml.org/forum/t-114765/microsoft-excludes-competitors-with-ooxml-patent-license#post-341023 Mon, 22 Dec 2008 20:16:10 +0000 arebenti 36024 It is not common for those parties which license their patents for an international standard. This is why you have indemnification models. I guess Simon Phipps once explained quite convincing why it is important.

]]> http://www.noooxml.org/forum/t-114765#post-340757 Re: Microsoft excludes competitors with OOXML patent license? http://www.noooxml.org/forum/t-114765/microsoft-excludes-competitors-with-ooxml-patent-license#post-340757 Mon, 22 Dec 2008 09:32:34 +0000 zoobab 2946 See also:

http://boycottnovell.com/2008/12/21/cat-is-out-of-the-bag/

]]> http://www.noooxml.org/forum/t-114765#post-340752 Re: Microsoft excludes competitors with OOXML patent license? http://www.noooxml.org/forum/t-114765/microsoft-excludes-competitors-with-ooxml-patent-license#post-340752 Mon, 22 Dec 2008 09:09:45 +0000 zoobab 2946 Standards are made for the people and the market, not for "industry players". But Standards Organisations are usually captured by vendors, as we saw during the OOXML debate at the BRM notably.

]]> http://www.noooxml.org/forum/t-114765#post-340422 Re: Microsoft excludes competitors with OOXML patent license? http://www.noooxml.org/forum/t-114765/microsoft-excludes-competitors-with-ooxml-patent-license#post-340422 Sun, 21 Dec 2008 18:11:02 +0000 arebenti 36024 It is not common to disclose the number of patents. In fact industry players generally see that as a disadvantage.

]]> http://www.noooxml.org/forum/t-114765#post-340372 Microsoft excludes competitors with OOXML patent license? http://www.noooxml.org/forum/t-114765/microsoft-excludes-competitors-with-ooxml-patent-license#post-340372 Sun, 21 Dec 2008 16:51:17 +0000 zoobab 2946 ECMA has just published two documents (letter1 and letter2) related to the patent licensing of ECMA376v1 and ECMA376v2. Microsoft promises to give a patent license under so called "reasonable terms". Reasonable for whom?

Here is the letter for the ECMA376v1:

ECMA-376%20Edition%201%20Microsoft%20Patent%20Declaration-600x.png

Here is the letter for the ECMA376v2:

ECMA-376%20Edition%202%20Microsoft%20Patent%20Declaration-600x.png

If you have some time, you could transcript it for blind people and bloggers to quote it.

ECMA has also a good sense of humor (the right source is a PPT presentation about ECMA):

Patents: Solid and proven patent policy and practice:

The General Assembly of Ecma shall not approve
recommendations of Standards which are covered by
patents when such patents will not be licensed by their
owners on a reasonable and non-discriminatory basis.”


However, Ecma does not:
  • Assess the essentiality and validity of patents for implementation of a standard, nor
  • Conduct patent searches for patents used in standards, nor
  • Define the term “Reasonable And Non Discriminatory” (RAND)

We have requested a commercial patent license in July, but radio silence since then on the Microsoft side. Yet another proof that the patent system does not work.

The ECMA code of conduct in patent matters is here:

1. Policy
General Declaration:
The General Assembly of Ecma shall not approve recommendations of Standards which are covered by patents when such patents will not be licensed by their owners on a reasonable and non-discriminatory basis.

1.1
In case the proposed Standard is covered by issued patents of Ecma members only: Members of the General Assembly are asked to state the Company licensing policy with respect to these patents.

I wonder what the latest requirement means. Nobody knows exactly which Microsoft patents covers the specification. Nobody has ever seen the list.

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