[nzlug] Brett Roberts responds re Novell/Microsoft

[Peter Harrison]

Here is a email question and answer interview with a Brett Roberts,
Director of Innovation, Microsoft New Zealand regarding the
Microsoft/Novell deal:


Question: What benefits do you think the Novell/Microsoft deal will
bring to Microsoft?

Brett Roberts: The primary benefit is that that improved
interoperability will provide increased business opportunities. In
addition, the agreement recognises Microsoft’s intellectual property and
our right as a commercial software company to benefit financially from
our innovations. 

 

Question: Is Microsoft open to making agreements with other Linux
distributors to support their products?

Brett Roberts: We are certainly open to similar agreements with other
organisations. 

 

Question: Will the Novell/Microsoft deal improve the chances of
Microsoft supporting ODF format more directly in MS Office?

Brett Roberts: Our bet is 100% on OpenXML however we have been working
with the community to make translators available because some customers
want this functionality. Brian Jones’ blog is well worth reading to
better understand the fundamental differences between ODF and OpenXML
and the translation work that’s currently underway
http://blogs.msdn.com/brian_jones/default.aspx  

 

Question: Did Oracle’s entry into the Linux Market encourage a deal with
Novell?

Brett Roberts: No. We have been working with Novell on this agreement
for many months.

 

Question: Is Microsoft claiming that Linux infringes Microsoft Patents,
as Steve Ballmer suggests in ComputerWorld?

Brett Roberts: SteveB’s been pretty clear on this and while we might not
see eye to eye with Novell on this point that doesn’t detract from the
intent of the agreement and what it delivers to our respective
customers.

Steve Ballmer: We've had an issue, a problem that we've had to confront,
and because open-source Linux does not come from a company -- Linux
comes from the community -- the fact that that product uses our patented
intellectual property is a problem for our shareholders.

 

Question: If Microsoft is claiming Linux is infringing Microsoft
Patents, can you state explicitly which patents are being infringed?

Answer: The beauty of the agreement is that the parties don’t have to
spend years in court identifying specific infringements and arguing back
and forth. By building an intellectual property “bridge” between the two
companies and indemnifying each other’s customers we can avoid legal
complexities and delays and focus instead on what’s really important:
customers’ peace of mind. This is an innovative approach and feedback
from customers so far has been overwhelmingly positive.

 

Question: Why did the deal relate to the customers of Novell, rather
than Novell itself when Novell already provides indemnification to its
customers?

Answers: As you can see from
http://www.novell.com/licensing/indemnity/register/index.html Novell’s
indemnification program is a fairly light offering. This agreement means
that customers don’t have to rely on Novell’s indemnification program or
be bound by any of its requirements in order to be confident that
they’re indemnified.

 

Question: How will Microsoft be able to support its Patent rights
against Linux in Europe? Does this issue imply that users in Europe are
quite safe from patent litigation?

Answer: The agreement is a worldwide one so Novell customers in Europe
are covered in exactly the same way as those elsewhere.

 

Question: Would a patent suit against Linux mean that Microsoft has
abandoned its commitment to compete based on quality of software rather
than through litigation?

Answer: I’m not aware of any patent suits. If you’re asking if this
agreement means we will stop competing head-to-head with Novell the
answer is “absolutely not”. What we might say to a customer though is
that if they’re dead-set on installing a Linux server we’d suggest they
opt for a distribution which recognises Microsoft’s IP rights.