*BSD News Article 27270


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From: tls@panix.com (Thor Lancelot Simon)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.bsd
Subject: Re: USL vs. BSDI Lawsuit Settled
Date: 10 Feb 1994 07:42:50 -0500
Organization: PANIX Public Access Internet and Unix, NYC
Lines: 45
Message-ID: <2jda4a$sip@panix.com>
References: <2j45sm$39l@BSDI.COM> <tgmCKv40r.Iz5@netcom.com> <CKvC57.MHy@cogsci.ed.ac.uk> <2jc48t$1pa@pdq.coe.montana.edu>
NNTP-Posting-Host: panix.com

In article <2jc48t$1pa@pdq.coe.montana.edu>,
Nate Williams <nate@bsd.coe.montana.edu> wrote:
>In article <CKvC57.MHy@cogsci.ed.ac.uk>,
>Richard Tobin <richard@cogsci.ed.ac.uk> wrote:
>>In article <tgmCKv40r.Iz5@netcom.com> tgm@netcom.com (Thomas G. McWilliams) writes:
>>>It seems that any NET/2 derived work is affected. From the above
>>>quote it appears that continued distribution of full NET/2 source
>>>is not allowed, and that BSDI will have to distribute portions in
>>>binary form until it can substitute the agreed upon portions of
>>>4.4(Lite). I guess that the big question of interest is exactly
>>>what portions of NET/2 are not freely distributable.
>>
>>[Note - I'm not a lawyer.]
>>
>>The fact that BSDI and UCB agreed not to continue distributing
>>portions of Net/2 does not mean that they aren't legally freely
>>distributable.  It just meant that BSDI and UCB decided it was in
>>their interests to agree to cease distributing them (presumably in
>>return for USL dropping the suit).  As far as I know, USL has not
>>threatened any 386BSD (etc) users with lawsuits, and I see no reason
>>for any of us to worry about it.
>
>But they are completely free to 'threaten' those groups.
>
>>PS Can the NetBSD / FreeBSD people confirm that USL haven't tried
>>   to stop them distributing anything?
>
>I can't speak for NetBSD, but nobody has approached FreeBSD that I'm
>aware of (yet).  Howeer, there is no reason for them NOT to sue us for
>distributing (and reasons to since they must feel there are valid
>reasons for protecting their code) 'tainted' code, so it is the #1
>priority of FreeBSD to replace those tainted files in FreeBSD with the
>code release in 4.4 lite when we get access to it.

If you are threatened, it bears remembering that USL was forced to the
bargaining table by UCB's more-than-slightly-convincing establishment of the
fact that 32V is not copyrighted.

All of the relevant arguments are part of the public record...

-- 
Thor Lancelot Simon	                                           tls@panix.COM
   But as he knew no bad language, he had called him all the names of common
  objects that he could think of, and had screamed: "You lamp!  You towel!  You
  plate!" and so on.              --Sigmund Freud