Microsoft's 90th-minute Software Patent Lie for OOXML
- Dr. Roy Schestowitz
- 2008-03-28 17:06:00 UTC
- Modified: 2008-03-28 17:06:00 UTC
Talk about timing.
Yesterday, Groklaw exposed
yet another serious gap in Microsoft's so-called 'Open' Specification Promise. This didn't stop Microsoft from pushing onto the press yet another article and claim that everyone is safe. Well, unless that "everyone" happens to be Microsoft's #1 competitor, of course. Here is the
article in question, in case you want to see for yourself how
Microsoft 'writes the news'. Watch how they address the
wrong question:
Microsoft: We won't sue over future OOXML versions
Microsoft has assured coders that its Open Specification Promise — a pledge that it won't sue developers using OOXML — will apply to future versions of the document format.
[...]
Linux Australia president Stewart Smith said Microsoft's announcement has helped to allay fears over one issue that the SLFC raised but did not deal with its biggest concern: that the OSP-covered specifications are not compatible with the General Public License (GPL).
Related articles (external):
Related and recent posts:
Main takeway: OOXML remains a case against the GNU GPL, not just against competition at large. Microsoft never chose to correct this, so it's a question of design, the engineering of exclusion.
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