THELOGICALINDIAN - 12 March 2024 Microsoft has launched addition antiopen antecedent software attack in the aftermost few weeks targeting arresting Linux and chargeless software companies Theyre attempting to absolute opensource development with buyouts apparent trolling and charging royalties for articles that use Linux Their contempo efforts accept them avaricious up patents for accessible antecedent technology including software developed by Canonical publishers of the best accepted Linux administration Ubuntu
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Microsoft’s History of Open Source Attacks
This isn’t the aboriginal time Microsoft has acclimated this alignment to try and bassinet addition in the accessible antecedent community. They acclimated agnate techniques in 2006 by entering a apparent acceding with Novell software apropos the auction of action Linux products. They’ve done the aforementioned affair afresh by applying for patents on their Continuum technology, (a agnate software, alleged Convergence, had been in development at Canonical in the years prior) and Signing a patent deal with Rakuten Inc. that covers Android and Linux devices. Microsoft Uses these agreements to go afterwards open-source software that hurts their margins, attempting to attenuate addition by circumventing the protections provided from open-source licensing. They use these cases as antecedent to authorize that Linux and added accessible antecedent software is their Intellectual Property. These cases are about covered by boilerplate media outlets with ample bias, painting Microsoft as attention adjoin infringement, back in absoluteness the adverse is true.
These Bullying approach accept helped Microsoft to advance bazaar allotment afterwards innovating, as added and added anchored and action systems are axis to Linux and BSD to drive their products. They accept a constant history of cracking down on accessible antecedent software that hurts their bottom line. This latest move from Microsoft should accession questions in the cryptocurrency community, as Microsoft’s Azure shares a lot of appearance in accepted with casework like MaidSafe and Storj Labs’ accessible antecedent offerings. They’ve alike entered a agnate patent accord with SalesForce to the ones that started agitation with added accessible antecedent projects. Alike Ethereum could be apparent as potentially anarchic by Microsoft. They accept a cogent pale in blockchain technology now, and accustomed their history of activity afterwards projects like this, accessible antecedent blockchain applications and toolkits are prime targets for Microsoft’s anti-competitive behavior.
In today’s acknowledged and software development environments, accessible antecedent licensing is no best abundant to assure projects that companies accept an absorption in kneecapping, as we’ve discussed in a antecedent article. Microsoft has done this in the past, so what’s endlessly them from accomplishing it afresh with the blockchain and cryptocurrencies? Not a accomplished lot at present. All it takes is a apparent acceding with a abate aggregation that can’t allow a acknowledged action to alpha the action in the blockchain ecosystem to get Microsoft’s brawl rolling again.
Do you see Microsoft’s Azure as a blackmail to accessible blockchain development? let us apperceive in the comments!
Images address of Microsoft, Storj Labs
