08.22.08
Here They Go: Novell Starts Marketing Patent Protection, Not Interoperability
Perhaps it was a matter of time. Novell starts pitching software patent FUD just like Microsoft. We also pointed out yesterday that SJVN seemed to have been brainwashed. We already have evidence of Novell pressuring journalists/developers ahead of the press coverage [1, 2] and the following almost confirms that SJVN too was contacted in advance. The goal? Damage control and manipulation of the coverage in the press. Having been softened the first time around, now he’s more blunt:
Novell and Microsoft: Stop with the FUD already
[…]
In an e-mail interview with Ian Bruce, Novell’s public relations director, Bruce wrote me that customers wanted the Novell/Microsoft package, in part, because it “provides IP (intellectual property) peace of mind for organizations operating in mixed source environments.”
It does? Since when?
This is significant because those software patents coupons (Microsoft calls them “patent royalties”) Novell used to insist have nothing to do with patents. The same pitch persisted as far as marketing goes… until now. It might be safe to guess that Ian Bruce, who is new to the company, does not know yet that he’s not supposed to say the truth. Novell spins and lies to the public. █
“I think the vast majority, and I’d quantify that at about 80 percent to 85 percent, of the open source community actually supports this deal [with Microsoft].”
–Justin Steinman, Novell
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.
pcole said,
August 22, 2008 at 8:12 pm
Was the question to those 80-85%, J,Steinman refers to, asked as clearly ambiguous as the question asked by the ISO committee to the appeals against ooxml from the 4 countries, or are they drinking the infamous kool-aid?
As for extortion or threats to extort (protectionism), that is a criminal act. If I threatened my neighbor in the same manner, would not the cops be at my door with a warrant for my arrest? Law enforcement for the district the threat is made should be responsible and start making arrests.
Roy Schestowitz said,
August 22, 2008 at 8:22 pm
It was a classic case of ‘cooking’ a biased (by design) survey to just support some marketing statement. See the details in:
http://boycottnovell.com/2006/12/12/new-microvell-survey/
http://boycottnovell.com/2006/12/12/microvell-survey-questions-mary-jo-foley-would-ask/
Similar recent examples:
Mojave: http://boycottnovell.com/2008/07/31/lies-damn-lies-mojave/
ISO ‘rigging’ its own vote: http://boycottnovell.com/2008/08/18/iso-pegged-its-own-vote/