Re: RIM patents using a mime body in a message (and ignores IETF IPR rules)

[Simon Josefsson <[e-mail]>]

Brian E Carpenter <[e-mail]> writes:

> On 2009-11-24 06:44, Steven M. Bellovin wrote:
>> On Mon, 23 Nov 2009 08:16:49 -0500
>> Scott Brim <[e-mail]> wrote:
>> 
>>> Simon Josefsson allegedly wrote on 11/23/2009 5:03 AM:
>>>> John-Luc said he is bound by confidentiality obligations from his
>>>> company, and I think the same applies to most employees of larger
>>>> organizations.  There is nothing explicit in BCP 79 to protect
>>>> against this apparent conflict of interest, or is there?
>>>    Since disclosure is required
>>>    for anyone submitting documents or participating in IETF
>>> discussions, a person who does not disclose IPR for this reason, or
>>> any other reason, must not contribute to or participate in IETF
>>> activities with respect to technologies that he or she reasonably and
>>> personally knows to be Covered by IPR which he or she will not
>>> disclose.
>>>
>> Precisely.  The conflict Simon mentions was of course known to most of
>> the WG; that's one reason we have that clause.
>
> IMHO, BCP79 creates no particular problem for corporate lawyers who
> are instructed by their corporate management to ensure that the company
> behaves as a good citizen in its standards activities. This is strongly
> in the company's interests, anyway, since failure to disclose when
> required by a standards process threatens the validity of the patent.

There is no requirement in the IETF process for organizations to
disclose patents as far as I can see.  The current approach of only
having people participate, and disclose patents, in the IETF is easy to
work around by having two persons in an organization doing different
things: one works on specifying and standardizing technology, and the
other is working on patenting the technology.

> It really is not the IETF's problem. It is a problem for a company that
> chooses not to behave as a good citizen.

The situation remains that the IETF does not have any mechanism to apply
pressure on organizations to disclose patent information.

/Simon