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Just a reminder, these posts are not legal advice. This site is the personal blog of Mark Radcliffe and the opinions expressed are those of Mark Radcliffe and not those of his clients, DLA Piper or the clients of DLA Piper.

About Me:

Mark Radcliffe

I have been practicing law in Silicon Valley for over thirty years assisting startups and global companies develop and market innovative products and services. I have participated in multiple business cyles in Silicon Valley from hardware to software to internet to cloud. My projects have included developing the dual licensing business model for open source startup, developing the original domain dispute resolution policy for NSI and assisting Sun in open sourcing the Solaris operating system. Recently, I served on the US Japan Innovation and Entrepreneurship Council (one of ten members) to develop a plan to encourage the innovation in Japan and the United States. I have been working with the same attorneys since 1986 although we have merged with other law firms several times. I am now a partner at DLA Piper, a (relatively) new global law firm formed in 2005 from the merger of three law firms. The firm now has 4200 lawyers in 31 countries and 77 cities. My experience in corporate securities (particularly venture capital) and intellectual property enables me to assist companies structure the financing and intellectual property strategy for developing ane exploiting a new product or service. I and my team work with fifty startups at one time as well as Global Fortune 100. I have been fortunate enough to work with companies in software, cloud computing, semiconductor, health care IT and Web 2.0.

Microsoft Sues TomTom: Is this a Challenge to Linux?

28/02/09

Microsoft Corporation has recently sued TomTom for patent infringement for its device which includes Linux. Although a number of stories have assumed that the suit is the first salvo in the long awaited patent assualt on Linux by Microsoft, I think that these concerns are premature. First, the suit is part of a longstanding controversy between the two parties and filing this type of suit is a common method of encouraging the other side to come to the bargaining table. Second, a brief review of many of the patents indicate that they are focused on GPS and other claims unrelated to Linux. Third, the claims relating to Linux, such as the FAT, are based on features common to many operating systems and are likely to be subject to challenge under the new higher standards for patents set by the Supreme Court.  They are unlikely to be Microsoft’s strongest patents reading on Linux.

I think that Jim Zemlin of the Linux Foundation got it right: calm down, but be alert http://www.linux-foundation.org/weblogs/jzemlin/2009/02/26/note-on-microsoft-tomtom-suit-calm-down-hope-for-the-best-plan-for-the-worst/. I may have more to tell tomorrow when we will hear from Sam Ramji at the Open Source Think Tank.

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2 Comments

  1. gps devices…

    GPS Vehicle tracking systems are suitable for many businesses spanning a wide range of industries….

    Trackback by gps devices — May 9, 2009 @ 3:48 pm

  2. [...] 9.  Microsoft Sues TomTom for Patent Infringement.  Microsoft Corporation sued TomTom for patent infringement for its GPS device which includes Linux. Although a number of commentators assumed that the suit was the first salvo in the long awaited patent assault on Linux by Microsoft, I was (and am) skeptical and thought that these concerns are premature. The claims relating to Linux, such as those covering FAT, are based on features common to many operating systems and would be likely to be subject to challenge under the new higher standards for patents set by the Supreme Court. Moreover, the case settled quickly, suggesting that it was not the beginning of a Microsoft assault against Linux   http://lawandlifesiliconvalley.com/blog/?p=214.  [...]

    Pingback by Law & Life: Silicon Valley » Top Ten Open Source Legal Developments: 2009 — December 31, 2009 @ 11:26 am

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