Red Hat Rejects Microsoft Patent Deal Overtures

Geekgal writes "Red Hat has slammed the door shut on any possibility of entering into a patent protection deal similar to the one Microsoft recently announced with Novell, eWeek is reporting. While Microsoft has repeatedly said it wants to work with Red Hat and would like to structure a relationship where its customers can be assured of the same thing as Novell's customers now are, Mark Webbink, Red Hat's deputy general counsel, says 'we do not believe there is a need for or basis for the type of relationship defined in the Microsoft-Novell announcement.' Interestingly enough, Microsoft also says that it has not ruled out going it alone and providing some sort of indemnification for its customers who also use Red Hat Linux." Meanwhile, Eben Moglen, the FSF general counsel, promises that GPLv3 will explicitly outlaw deals like this. (Of course everyone's on v2, so calling the Novell deal "DOA" would be premature.)

Comments

Good for them

[Epeeist]

If I wasn't running Kubuntu they would get my business.

Re:Good for them

[diersing]

And by business, we mean free downloading.

Re:OK, microsoft is shilling GPLv3 now?

[Gazzonyx]

Nah, they'll send him a cake.

Re:Correctamundo!!

[fangorious]

There aint a [got] damn thing anyone can do about it.

Get these mother f'in .nets off this mother f'in linux?

Re:WHY!?

[shashi]

Plain simple: YOU are wrong. THAT is never happening

Wow. Your skills at debate are astounding. Too bad there isn't a +1, Nuh uh! just for you.

Re:You WILL become one ........with the Borg.

[Morphine007]

and owns ~80 of the market.

A WHOLE 80 SERVERS!? ... shit man... that's like 95% of the market ;-)

/ducks