B&N claims that all of these [exposed patents] are "trivial" and "insignificant" in terms of Android's use. They claim Microsoft is using these patents for minor functionality to hold Android hostage. It is not just licensing fee's either, ...

The battles seen in the US over software patents could spread to the UK and the rest of Europe if the unitary patent is allowed to come into force

This document presents information about patents and patent liability useful for developers working on community distributions of Free and Open Source Software (FOSS).

MPEG LA is blatantly trying to claim a monopoly on online video. The patent system is failing for software, and initiatives to “fix” the system are not working. A clear exclusion of software ideas from patentability is the only workable solution. VP8 is an attempt to free the software industry and all software developers from this patent troll.

Open Source Initiative (OSI) has asked a German competition law regulator to investigate the purchase of patents owned by Novell by CPTN, a consortium led by Microsoft and including Apple, Oracle and EMC.

If the ruling is upheld, it would almost certainly stifle software innovation on a global scale and make development the preserve of corporations with large legal departments and their own patent arsenals available for countersuing.

This edition covers the current developments in Open Standards policy, some basic information about software patents, an update from FSCONS about distributed computing, and how you can support us in the end of the year.