Author: JT Smith
Kelly McNeill writes “Recently published reports have stirred up a hornet’s nest after implying that the open alternative to GIF may be in trouble because Apple Computer is the owner of a patent on key component technologies used in the PNG image format. The concern is over Apple’s U.S. patent No. 5,379,129, filed in May of 1992 and granted to Apple in January 1995. The patent describes a “method for compositing a source and destination image using a mask image. In response to the concern, Greg Roelofs — a member of the PNG group and author of “PNG: The Definitive Guide” — debunked the incorrect implications in a forum discussion.”
