Mon, 27 Mar 2006

Ballmer Won't Dismiss Idea of Suits Against Linux

A new business model for a new millennium: if you can't beat'em in the market, pound'em in the courts.

According to an interview with Steve Ballmer in Forbes, Microsoft is open to the possibility of filing patent suits against Linux in the interest of their shareholders. Ballmer said: 'Well, I think there are experts who claim Linux violates our intellectual property. I'm not going to comment. But to the degree that that's the case, of course we owe it to our shareholders to have a strategy.' Microsoft filed more than 3000 new applications for software patents in 2005 and already owns more than 4000 patents, including many patents on fundamental, but trivial technologies, like double clicks.

(link) [Slashdot]

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