Microsoft Claims IP Rights on Portions of OpenGL

An anonymous reader writes "Minutes of the latest OpenGL ARB meeting reveal that Microsoft is claiming IP over the vertex and fragment extensions, both critical for exposing the capabilities of modern graphics hardware. The minutes also include an update on the progress of OpenGL 2.0." The question is, what does this mean for Linux -- how will Microsoft exercise their "rights"?

Comments

They have every right to do whatever they want

[Anonymous Coward]

Of course and they have the "right". They bought a whole lot of IP from SGI a few months ago.
Check it out here:
http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=02/01/16/182425 6&mode=thread&tid=152

It's an ARB requirement

[Anonymous Coward]

It's an ARB requirement for any participant to state that they might have IP involved in a particular feature or extension. Try checking out previous ARB minutes where nVidia, ATI, and other companies have made statements about their own IP and possible conflicts. This is a non-issue.

Too little to go on...

[Codeala]

This is their entire claim as recorded in the minute:

Microsoft believes they have patent rights relating to the ARB_vertex_program extension.

Not much to go on really. What is interesting is the members' reactions (especially NVIDIA's):

IBM thinks it's premature to vote on this without seeing the MS license terms. NVIDIA wants to vote it in at this meeting. SGI thinks if we can't deal with IP claims, we might as well all go home.

It seems crazy to "vote it in" (as in agreeing?) with so little information. Unless you are in really deep with MS ;-)

Microsoft and 3D Graphics: A Case Study

[Performer Guy]

http://www.vcnet.com/bms/features/3d.html