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TomTom chooses a moderate limited hang out route

Rather than seek to have Microsoft's patents invalidated, TomTom has chosen a legal strategy of claiming Microsoft is violating TomTom patents.
Written by Dana Blankenhorn, Inactive

Rather than seek to have Microsoft's patents invalidated, TomTom has chosen a legal strategy of claiming Microsoft is violating TomTom patents.

The suit, filed in the Eastern District of Virginia, accuses Microsoft of violating four TomTom patents relating to vehicle navigation software. This followed Microsoft's suits alleging TomTom violated its patents in its use of the Linux kernel.

Thus the issue of Microsoft's claims on Linux are not addressed. It is, as Safire's Political Dictionary would put it, a modified limited hang out route.

Microsoft's response has an air of "why are you bothering" about it, noting "we remain committed to a licensing solution."

In other words we claim you violate our patents, you claim we violate yours, isn't the logical solution a cross-licensing of patents?

In my opinion the TomTom suit is a placeholder, a way to sidestep the issue and set the stage for a settlement while the Software Freedom Law Center seeks a patent attorney.

If the SFLC wants Microsoft's claims against Linux invalidated by a court, it will have to seek that itself.

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