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Re: [DEPLOY] Motion to abandon Sender ID

2004-09-02 06:04:34

I concur.

It appears to me that the only thing that could save Sender-ID right now is if Microsoft immediately announces that they are dropping the licensing requirements and will donate their patent directly to the IETF or the FSF or some such. Even a simple promise from them that they will revise their license isn't going to work; they've known for too long now about the problems with it and we have hearsay that MS Legal would rather let it die than back down on the provisions that make it hostile toward open source.

The notion that this WG can decide that Microsoft's pending patents will be invalidated by prior art and obviousness and therefore push the standard forward is mistaken. Nobody is going to simply ignore MS's claims and their license on the basis of the opinion of the IETF.

I therefore recommend that the chairs elect to move ClassicSPF forward as an experimental standard and let Sender-ID die. I would hope that if this is the case that Microsoft accepts the decision and backs the standard without attempting to assert any further IP rights over it or "embracing and extending" it. Doing so would be graceful on their part and would go a long way in alleviating the deep misgivings that many techies and developers have about Microsoft.

Kevin Peuhkurinen


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