01.02.08
Junk Patents Versus Charity (Another Case for a Reform)
Back in November we covered the disturbing developments that surround the One Laptop Per Child. This charitable project came under fire not only by Intel and Microsoft, but also by a patent troll. Here is the latest:
I know. You thought I was goofing off partying and drinking in the new year. Not really. I was reading some cynical documents just filed in the LANCOR v. OLPC litigation. Yes, it’s begun in a Nigerian court. LANCOR has actually done it. Heaven only knows it makes me want to drink. Guess what the Nigerian keyboard makers want from the One Laptop Per Child charitable organization trying to make the world a better place?
$20 million dollars.
I kid you not. $20 million dollars in “damages”.
For background and context see the following two articles.
First: LANCOR’s Adé Oyegbola Answers Groklaw’s Questions About OLPC
PJ: Thank you for responding. I think you misunderstand then one thing about OLPC. OLPC is a recognized charity under the law. Selling a laptop for cost does not make them commercial, Ade.
Many of my readers have been asking me, and I hope you do not feel insulted if I ask on their behalf, but is there any connection or have you had any contact with Microsoft or Intel?
Do remember that Microsoft was caught bribing people in Nigeria only a couple of months ago. It did this in order to fight GNU/Linux adoption, essentially by intercepting a done deal. Its practices in Asia (e.g. apparently persuading Thailand to drop its OLPC commitments) tell a little more, not to mention its many OOXML briberies, which are very recent.
Here is the second article to be aware of: OLPC’s Nigerian patent suit being waged by a man convicted of bank fraud
The Boston Globe is reporting that LANCOR, the Nigerian-owned company that has filed suit against the One Laptop Per Child project for patent infringement, is actually helmed by a man convicted of bank fraud. He spent a year in prison.
Some would wish to put two and two together, but we prefer to just present evidence rather than reach any conclusion or openly state an asseration.
In other patent news, Qualcomm continues to suffer. What an ugly ride this has already been [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19].
A federal judge in California ruled on Monday that wireless chip maker Qualcomm Inc (QCOM.O) must immediately stop selling third-generation, or 3G, WCDMA cellular chips that infringe on the Broadcom Corp (BRCM.O) patents.
Customers never rejoice at the sight of another embargo or another unnecessary castration of novel features. █
Highlight: Novell was the first to acknowledge that Microsoft FUD tactics had substance. Novell then used anti-Linux FUD to market itself. 
Highlight: Xandros let Microsoft make patent claims and brag about (paid-for) OOXML support. 
Highlight: Linspire's CEO not only fell into Microsoft arms, but he also assisted the company's attack on GNU/Linux. 
Highlight: Microsoft craves pseudo (proprietary) standards and gets its way using proxies and influence which it buys. 
Highlight: The invasion into the open source world is intended to leave Linux companies neglected, due to financial incentives from Microsoft. 
Analysis: Xen, an open source hypervisor, possibly fell victim to Microsoft's aggressive (and stealthy) acquisition-by-proxy strategy.