Patent Commons
Encyclopedia
The Patent Commons Project was launched on November 15, 2005 by the Open Source Development Labs
(OSDL). The core of the project is an online
patent
commons reference library
aggregating and documenting information about patent-related pledge
s and other legal
solutions directed at the open-source software community.
OSDL
Open Source Development Labs was a non-profit organization supported by a global consortium tasked to "accelerate the deployment of Linux for enterprise computing." Founded in 2000, its goals included "to be the recognized center-of-gravity for the Linux industry."On January 22, 2007, OSDL and the...
(OSDL). The core of the project is an online
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
patent
Patent
A patent is a form of intellectual property. It consists of a set of exclusive rights granted by a sovereign state to an inventor or their assignee for a limited period of time in exchange for the public disclosure of an invention....
commons reference library
Library
In a traditional sense, a library is a large collection of books, and can refer to the place in which the collection is housed. Today, the term can refer to any collection, including digital sources, resources, and services...
aggregating and documenting information about patent-related pledge
Pledge (law)
A pledge is a bailment or deposit of personal property to a creditor to secure repayment for some debt or engagement, The term is also used to denote the property which constitutes the security....
s and other legal
Law
Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...
solutions directed at the open-source software community.
See also
- Open Invention NetworkOpen Invention NetworkThe Open Invention Network is a company that acquires patents and licenses them royalty free to entities which, in turn, agree not to assert their own patents against Linux and Linux-related systems and applications.-History:...
(OIN) - Software patentSoftware patentSoftware patent does not have a universally accepted definition. One definition suggested by the Foundation for a Free Information Infrastructure is that a software patent is a "patent on any performance of a computer realised by means of a computer program".In 2005, the European Patent Office...
- Software patent debateSoftware patent debateThe software patent debate is the argument dealing with the extent to which it should be possible to patent software and computer-implemented inventions as a matter of public policy. Policy debate on software patents has been active for years. The opponents to software patents have gained more...
- IBM Technical Disclosure BulletinIBM Technical Disclosure BulletinThe IBM Technical Disclosure Bulletin was a technical publication produced by IBM between 1958 and 1998. The purpose of the Bulletin was to disclose inventions that IBM did not want their competitors to get patents on. The Bulletin was a form of defensive publication...