Comments below...
-Rick
> -----Original Message-----
> From: don@lexmark.com [mailto:don@lexmark.com]
> Sent: Friday, December 13, 2002 7:42 AM
> To: Rick Seeler
> Cc: ifx@pwg.org
> Subject: Re: IFX> The long awaited IP statement from Adobe.
> Importance: High
>
>
>
> Rick:
>
> There are several issues with this IP statement from Adobe
> that concern Lexmark.
>
> 1) This grant is only for the small part of PDF that is PDFax
> or PDF/is. In order to achieve the largest possible number of
> implementations, this license should allow both printers and
> PDF creators to create and consume as much of PDF 1.4 as
> possible. It seems clear to me that if Adobe provides a
> Royalty Free patent for all of PDF 1.4 then, at least the
> printer manufacturers, would have additional incentive to
> support PDF/is as the market for it grows. This broader
> license would seem to be consisted with Adobe's publicly
> stated goal to broaden support for PDF wherever possible.
Adobe legal is working on making an "improved" IP statement for all of PDF.
This statement, if, and when it becomes available will not be specific to
the PWG and will appear on our web site, and/or in a future version of the
PDF reference.
>
> 2) The field of use restriction stated in:
>
> "Accordingly, Adobe agrees to provide a Royalty Free License
> to all Essential Claims solely for the purpose of
> implementing the IPP FAX Standard."
>
> will prevent the implementation of IPPFax by members of the
> Free Software Foundation whose work is licensed under the GNU
> General Public License. According to Professor Eben Moglen of
> Columbia University Law School, General Counsel of the Free
> Software Foundation:
>
> "Section 7 of the GNU GPL is intended to prevent the
> distribution of software which appears to be Free (because it
> is released under a copyright license guaranteeing the
> freedoms to use, copy, modify, and redistribute) but which
> cannot, in fact, be modified and redistributed because of
> patent license restrictions that limit the use of patent
> claims practiced by the software to a particular purpose.
> Though other Free Software licenses may not happen to contain
> provisions equivalent to GPL's Section 7, this does not imply
> that programs released under those licenses will be Free
> Software if the patent claims contributed "royalty-free" to
> the standard those programs implement are limited to a
> particular field of use."
>
> Considering that one of the major providers of IPP, CUPS, is
> licensed under GNU GPL, this field of use restriction is a
> major issue.
>
> 3) All references to "IEEE Printer Working Group" and the
> like should be changed to "The Printer Working Group, a
> program of the IEEE-ISTO" when first referenced and then just
> to "Printer Working Group" subsequently.
>
> This list may not be exhaustive. Review by Lexmark legal
> counsel has not happened yet. This is simply my review. We
> are continuing to review it.
>
> **********************************************
> Don Wright don@lexmark.com
>
> Member, IEEE SA Standards Board
> PatCom Chair, SCC Liaison
> Member, IEEE-ISTO Board of Directors
> f.wright@ieee.org / f.wright@computer.org
>
> Director, Alliances & Standards
> Lexmark International
> 740 New Circle Rd
> Lexington, Ky 40550
> 859-825-4808 (phone) 603-963-8352 (fax)
> **********************************************
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> "Rick Seeler" <rseeler@adobe.com>@pwg.org on 11/15/2002 08:05:29 PM
>
> Sent by: owner-ifx@pwg.org
>
>
> To: <ifx@pwg.org>
> cc:
> Subject: IFX> The long awaited IP statement from Adobe.
>
>
> IFXers,
>
> Here is the IP statement Adobe has created specifically for
> the PWG with respect to the use of PDF in an IPPFAX specification.
>
> Let me know if you have any questions.
>
>
>
> -Rick
>
> (See attached file: Patent Clarification IEEE v1a.pdf)
>
>
>
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