Unix copyright row gets heated
Novell demands SCO give details of its claims to own operating system
The legal wrangle over Linux took another turn last week after networking software vendor Novell claimed that it, not Linux software vendor SCO, holds the copyright to Unix.
In a scathing attack on SCO, Novell demanded that the firm provides more details of its allegations of intellectual property infringement against Linux or take them back.
In a letter sent to Darl McBride, SCO's chief executive, Jack Messman, Novell's chief executive, ripped into SCO's claims of owning Unix.
He asked SCO to provide details of its claim that its intellectual property had been added to Linux without its consent. He added that contrary to SCO's claims, Novell still owns patents to Unix System V.
SCO's allegation that Unix System V code had been added to Linux without its authorisation left critical questions unanswered, Messman said.
The questions included: what specific code was copied from Unix System V; where the code can be found in Linux; who copied the code; and why this alleged copying infringes SCO's intellectual property.
"As best we can determine, the vagueness about SCO's allegation is intentional," Messman said. "SCO's true intent is to sow fear, uncertainty and doubt about Linux to extort payments from its distributors and users.
"SCO continues to say that it owns the Unix System V patents, yet it must know that it does not. A simple review of US Patent Office records reveals that Novell owns those patents."
He warned that SCO's actions could lead to "the loss of sales and jobs, delayed projects, cancelled financing, and a balkanised Linux community".
Messman added: "Further, we demand that SCO retract its false and unsupported assertions of ownership in Unix patents and copyrights or provide us with conclusive information regarding SCO's ownership claims."
In response, SCO issued a statement saying: "SCO has the contractual right to prevent improper donations of Unix code, methods or concepts into Linux by any Unix vendor.
"Copyrights and patents are protection against strangers. Contracts are what you use against parties you have relationships with.
"From a legal standpoint, contracts end up being far stronger than anything you could do with copyrights."
Peter Dawes, sales director at reseller LinuxIT, said: "SCO/Caldera did not have a working model outside the markets it channelled. It looks like Caldera is trying to realise some of the revenue it expected to get from buying SCO."