Who
RedHat
IBM
Google
What / Where
The Gist
Patents can hurt Free Software, because of this several large companies who are friends of FOSS have created various patent promises. Basically a patent promise is a gaurentee by a company that they will not use patents that they have filed to protect the spread of FOSS.
The Good
Helps promote FOSS
Ensures the longetivity of Open Development
The Bad
The fact these documents have to exist
Everything is situational
Needs patents for specific instances
The Questions
- Are companies protecting themselves or FOSS communities?
In Review
Solid read, definitely would recommend to anyone interested in advising FOSS projects. 9/10