Return-Path: Received: (majordomo@vger.kernel.org) by vger.kernel.org via listexpand id ; Sun, 18 Feb 2001 15:06:20 -0500 Received: (majordomo@vger.kernel.org) by vger.kernel.org id ; Sun, 18 Feb 2001 15:06:01 -0500 Received: from mail.mojomofo.com ([208.248.233.19]:50181 "EHLO mojomofo.com") by vger.kernel.org with ESMTP id ; Sun, 18 Feb 2001 15:05:53 -0500 Message-ID: <015401c099e6$31ec2020$0300a8c0@methusela> From: "Aaron Tiensivu" To: Cc: In-Reply-To: <20010218004456.A13695@top.worldcontrol.com> Subject: Re: XOR [ was: Linux stifles innovation.] Date: Sun, 18 Feb 2001 15:04:57 -0500 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Priority: 3 X-MSMail-Priority: Normal X-Mailer: Microsoft Outlook Express 5.50.4133.2400 X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V5.50.4133.2400 Sender: linux-kernel-owner@vger.kernel.org X-Mailing-List: linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org | Since that time, about 1986, I learned that there is a whole cottage | industry of going through old, but not too old, patents and seeing how | they can be misconstrued to apply to current technology, buying the | patent for cheap, and then threatening "infringers". More or less | an extortion racket. Generally the license fee demanded is low enough | that is more cost effective, in the short term, to pay. And with | shareholder lawsuits the way they are, short term thinking | is the only thinking shareholders accept, and the extortionists | know it. Those of them that didn't end up in jail went on to form RAMBUS in the 90s. - To unsubscribe from this list: send the line "unsubscribe linux-kernel" in the body of a message to majordomo@vger.kernel.org More majordomo info at http://vger.kernel.org/majordomo-info.html Please read the FAQ at http://www.tux.org/lkml/