JPEG Patent Could Impact The Gimp

SeanAhern writes "A number of years ago, Forgent acquired a patent on some of the algorithms required for JPEG compression and decompression, and recently sued 31 big-name IHVs and ISVs. A Newsforge article gets into some of the details and asks whether open source tools like the Gimp could be liable as well. To add fuel to the fire, the Joint Photographic Experts Group's committee thinks that some of the patent may be invalid. The p2pnet.net story mentions that the FTC has some skepticism as well. We originally talked about this on Slashdot back in the summer of 2002."

Comments

At least we still have PNG

[Anonymous Coward]

Who needs lossless images anyway! Just use 24bit PNG! Sure, they're huge, but you've got broadband, right?

Re:This is a very bad trend

[RoLi]

Just for the record, Microsoft did not grow big because of ripping off good ideas, but because IBM made the PC the MS-platform and Asian manufacturers made cheap hardware for the PC.