FSF says Microsoft cannot repudiate GPLv3

Stephen Withers
Wednesday, 29 August 2007 07:23

Business IT - Open Source

Microsoft "cannot declare itself exempt from the requirements of GPLv3", the Free Software Foundation has asserted.

The GNU General Public License version 3 includes language specifically designed so that any patent protection promises made to certain classes of users is automatically extended to all users.

The change arose because of the deal between Microsoft and Novell that protected SUSE users from patent infringement suits. (Microsoft has alleged that certain of its patents are infringed by Linux and/or associated open source software, but has yet to identify those patents or which items are allegedly infringing.)

Novell has embraced GPLv3, but Microsoft has asserted that "is not a party to the GPLv3 license and none of its actions are to be misinterpreted as accepting status as a contracting party of GPLv3 or assuming any legal obligations under such license."

The centre of the issue is whether the Novell support certificates distributed by Microsoft constitute "procuring conveyance" under GPLv3. Microsoft effectively attempted to retrospectively change the terms of the certificates to exclude any GPLv3 components, but it is not clear whether that would hold up in court if the company was held to have procured conveyance of the software.

"[I]f any user receives a discriminatory patent promise from Microsoft as a result of purchasing a copy of a GPLv3 program from a Microsoft fulfillment agent, Microsoft would be bound by GPLv3 to extend that same promise of safety to all downstream users of that software," FSF officials stated.

"Microsoft cannot by any act of anticipatory repudiation divest itself of its obligation to respect others' copyrights... it cannot declare itself exempt from the requirements of GPLv3."

In what what verged on a call for the establishment of a fighting fund, the statement concluded "We will ensure - and, to the extent of our resources, assist other GPLv3 licensors in ensuring - that Microsoft respects our copyrights and complies with our licenses."