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Linus Says Android License Claim Is 'Bogus'

Posted by timothy on from the who-is-this-linus-guy-and-what-does-he-know dept.

jbrodkin writes "Linux kernel creator Linus Torvalds has scoffed at a new claim that Android violates the Linux license. Google's use of the Bionic Library does not result in a derivative work that has to be licensed under GPL, as some lawyers are claiming, Torvalds says. 'It seems totally bogus,' Torvalds said. 'We've always made it very clear that the kernel system call interfaces do not in any way result in a derived work as per the GPL.' While some claims against Android can be dismissed outright, Google and its partners still must fend off patent lawsuits filed by rivals Microsoft and Oracle."

7 of 116 comments (clear)

  1. What? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    The character from Peanuts says this?

    1. Re:What? by h0dg3s · · Score: 4, Funny

      Good grief.

    2. Re:What? by MrEricSir · · Score: 4, Funny

      No, this is Linus Torvalds; he's an adult, so everything he says sounds like "Wha-wha wha-wha."

      --
      There's no -1 for "I don't get it."
    3. Re:What? by peragrin · · Score: 1, Funny

      Not to be mean but I thought Wha-wha-wha-wha was richard Stallman?

      --
      i thought once I was found, but it was only a dream.
  2. With all respect to Torvalds: by mysidia · · Score: 2, Funny

    His opinion on this matter is the opinion of one man. And his opinion's in no way privileged. He's definitely not the sole copyright owner of Linux rights, so Linus is unable to make a statement about the disposition of Google's activities that would be binding on all the copyright owners.

    Last I checked Torvalds was a Software engineer/Hacker not a legal scholar or lawyer with tons of experience with the GPL and Intellectual property law.

    Not to discount Linus, but I think RMS or FSF lawyers would be more qualified than Linus to speak on this particular area.

    Because whether Google could be held in violation of the GPL or not is ultimately going to be up to the lawyers, and the question will only really even be raised if a copyright owner is raising a stink and intends to seek legal remedy.

    1. Re:With all respect to Torvalds: by mysidia · · Score: 5, Funny

      Right now the case against Google is with Oracle. All these Linux matters are being brought up as FUD.

      Oracle? Oracle has about as much right to slam Google of violationg the GPL as Satan would have slamming St. Peter for allegedly having coveted his neighbor's Xbox 360.

      When it comes to Open source development, Oracle is akin to the planet killer from the StarTrek season 2, episode #35 The Doomsday Machine.

      As in... Oracle is a giant open source project eater. They buy out valuable open source sponsors, and spit out s****. Look at their track record: Sleepycat Software (BerkelyDB), Innobase (InnoDB), Sun (Java, OpenSolaris, MySQL, Glassfish)

      What do we have to show for it? Open source projects vanishing or perverted. In all likelihood these will all soon show to be abandonware or obsoleted.

      Hell... OpenSolaris is already dead not just in theory.

      And Java is on its way out, due to the way Oracle's f"""cking up suing folks over adapting Java to their needs.... (what happened to 'open source'... 'community'?)

      Sun forums going away..... Oracle not talking to the community, except in marketing faux blogs.

      Translation; Oracle.......... "Open source community"; except the community's being taken out, oh, and by the way, the source / development isn't open anymore.

  3. Re:Fud... by sco08y · · Score: 3, Funny

    Seriously. A lot of media pundits are nothing but paid writers employed by major companies

    Wait.

    Stop.

    You mean journalists work for companies?! And get paid?

    Holy mother of all fucking conspiracies, Batman.