Web Services Patented by IBM and Microsoft

daecabhir writes "This article from ZDNet is an interesting read. Not just because of the implications of what IBM and Microsoft appear to be doing, but because it again brings to light how susceptible many standards processes continue to be to commercial interests. You would think that being early adopters, crafting the standards so that they can have the first and most compliant implementations might be enough - but I guess these companies aren't secure about the quality of their products, so they have to go down the route of intellectual property ownership, enforcement and RAND (reasonable and non-discriminatory, whatever "reasonable" means) licensing fees."

Comments

It doesn't matter

[X.25]

If they do decide to try to get royalties, they will find out that a lot of people are jumping to other technologies.

I am about to start a new contract for a bank, and I'll be involved in deciding what technologies will be used for new online application.

I am sure that SOAP/WSDL will not be considered, until we're sure what the real story is.

If someone decides that everyone has to stop using SSH, we'd have temporary solution tomorrow, and a permanent one few weeks/months ago.

The same will happen with this.

Re:It doesn't matter

[fferreres]

You certainly don't know how the world works. Underestimating the power of Microsoft and IBM to set a standard is dangerous, and overestimating the people's inteligence regarding licesing is another.

After all, i don't see many people arguing because Office locks them into Office, they blame other files for not reading Office. Same with a non IE browser, etc. Same with the idiotic EULAs which even the biggest corporations accept, refusing to have ANY right if program flaws compromise their operations yet are scary to use ANY free, open-source, tested and even audited piece of code out there.

I don't mean to be negative, but you have to grant me that "inteligence and comon sense will prevail" doesn't work in real life.

Its simple...don't use it.

[rivendahl]

I feel the direction we should take as a community is to develope global software solutions for the masses by the masses. This ensures the scalability, reliablity, and useability of the software. As well we should focus our attentions to creating internet protocols that ensure the integrity of data and the near perfect delivery of data and content. If I were an english major or a marketing genius I could fit more buzz words in here.

The bottom line is corporations will make every attempt no matter how pro-this or pro-that (IBM using Linux and OSD) or the usefullness (M$ stealing OS code from OSD for Winblows) to gobble financial assests. The best part is once a company reaches a certain level of capitol its all numbers.

If M$ wants to charge its only out of fear of admitting that free works better than not free in a lot of cases. Charging seems absurd to us because we are used to being able to use free a lot. We use free now. And that is free as in free beer.

Everyday we use things that are FORCED upon us that are not free as in free beer and not free as in freedom of choice, change, and modification. Telephones, electricity, ambulances, hospitals, public and mass transit, CD-R's, RIAA, MPAA, and so on.

Screw it. I'm preaching to the choir on this aren't I?

Later,

Rivendahl

Re:Quality of their products not at issue!

[NoMoreNicksLeft]

Hmm. Limitless income source? I guess it depends.

Do I have to feed 3 infants to rabid pit bulls every week, to collect?

Do I have to lock old people up in a dungeon, and feed them moldy dog chow to collect?

Does it require poisoning the water table of a major region or continent?

Or running for political office?

Selling my soul to satan?

Actually, there are even more, but you must see my point by now... there are any number of things that I consider either too tasteless or unethical to want to make money off ot them. And I think raping the entire world, and its first true global network, just so they can own a piece of its soul for all eternity, fits in nicely with the above examples.