Linux.com

The way I thought this worked was that if a piece of software is found to contain a patented method then it could not be licensed under the GPL. So if microsoft uncovers a patent in Linux (for example) the file that contains it would not be licensable under the GPL. It would still be copyright the author who would then have the choice of either striking up his own personal cross-licensing deal with the patent owner and redistributing the file under a different license (unlikely) or changing the file so that it no longer infringes the patent and re-releasing it under the GPL. Think about the GIF patent. The result of that merely caused people to go out and make the png/mng image format as a replacement. Obviously this could be enormously inconvenient and damaging. However free software can and will survive. The whole process will serve to eradicate patent encumbered software from the Free Software fold and this will make it even more valuable and desirable to use. In a world where software litigation is becoming the norm, won't businesses be crying out for a pool of software that is patent free?

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