Open Invention Network: A Defensive Patent Pool for Open Source Projects and Businesses

This article explores how patents impact innovation within free/libre open source software (F/LOSS) businesses and projects. The number of software patent suits brought each year is increasing and is diverting millions of dollars in funds from developers to lawyers. With patent suits on the rise, the US Supreme Court has left the F/LOSS community in a position where it must either wait years for legislation or address the issue of patent suits itself. However, defending the Linux kernel and related technologies is a different challenge than the one that faces proprietary software businesses. This article describes Open Invention Network, an initiative that is designed to meet the particular challenges facing the F/LOSS community and businesses by providing a defensive patent pool.