Second point - at this time Microsoft has no patent or any other IP
relevant to this and is not forcing anyone to take out a
license. Therefore, no license is required as of today. We are talking
about a *possible* patent that *may be* approved in the future. As
Microsoft states in their FAQ:
This just makes the SenderID license requirement a time bomb waiting
to go off. For all I know, the patent was granted 5 minutes ago.
But the worst case is that you'd then need to fax in the license. I'd bet
MSFT would be willing to allow software containing it to be distributed as
long as those who deploy it get a license. And what would MSFT really do if
you didn't get a license? I mean, would they really prosecute a user of an
international standard over IP that they freely give away to anybody who
sends in a fax (or I'd bet even signing online would be offered soon
enough) -- with the IP implemented in many SenderID implementations?
But there's also a chance that the IP claimed won't be patented for a long
time, if at all.
Harry