MS launching a Patent Ambush on Free Software?
hweimer 27 Mar 2008 16:21
According to the announcement, Microsoft and Sourcesense will contribute code implementing OOXML to the Apache POI project. Since POI is being licensed under the Apache License, version 2.0, contributors are required to grant a patent license, which Microsoft has so far refused to do for OOXML. I think there are two possible outcomes: either we get a patent license through POI, or Microsoft may even introduce more patented code into the project (aka "patent ambush").