Microsoft says its latest licensing policy signals its
commitment to working with other suppliers in the industry on
intellectual property swaps intended to drive interoperability and
innovation.
Microsoft will create licensing programs to offer access to a
broad range of its intellectual property, including copyrights,
trademarks, file formats and schema, software technology, and
Microsoft-developed standards specifications.
Microsoft also introduced programs offering technology and
patent licences for two of its creations, its ClearType technology
for improving the readability of text on LCDs and its File
Allocation Table (FAT) file system storage format.
Some of Microsoft's licensing programs will be royalty free,
like the Office XML (Extensible Markup Language) schemas it began
offering developers last month. Others, like its new ClearType and
FAT programs, will carry fees. Details of the various programs are
listed on a new Microsoft IP website,
http://www.microsoft.com/mscorp/ip/.
Licensing Microsoft's FAT technology will cost companies 25
cents per unit incorporating the system, such as memory cards and
digital cameras. Fees are capped at $250,000 per manufacturer.
The ClearType program will let vendors use the technology in
devices such as handheld computers and mobile phones, with fees
generally in the range of $1 to $3 per device.
Microsoft's new licensing approach is unrelated to its antitrust
settlement agreement with the US Department of Justice and its
skirmish over the same issue with the European Commission,
according to Brad Smith, the company's general counsel and senior
vice president.
"We felt it was important to take this step based on our strong
dialogues with a number of other companies in our industry," Smith
said.
Analyst Joe Wilcox, of Jupiter Research, called the new
licensing policy an "important first step" for Microsoft as the
industry's most notorious proponent of proprietary technology edges
toward a more open approach to product development.
"Traditionally Microsoft has been very guarded about its IP. Its
approach has been to try to differentiate itself from others with
its IP," he said. "I think what you're really seeing here as much
as anything is evidence of the changes going on within
Microsoft."
Anything in Microsoft's portfolio is potentially available for
licensing.
"Access to and exchange of intellectual property is really
essential to the continued growth and development of the broader IT
industry," said Smith. "Microsoft is committed to licensing its
intellectual property on clear, commercially reasonable terms based
on industry norms."
However, executives were guarded about how extensively the
company would consider expanding its Windows and Office-related
licensing.
"We're aware of the application programming interface issue,"
said Microsoft director of business strategy for IP David Kaefer,
referring to the interfaces software programs use for connecting
with other applications and services.
"We'd like to improve information about the APIs that are
already available, and then we need to see what people say.
Clearly, to the extent that people are still asking questions about
them, there's interest."
Microsoft has been working for nearly a year on developing a
clearer IP policy.
Microsoft expects most licensing arrangements to be made
one-on-one with interested companies. Formal programs such as the
ClearType and FAT system arrangements will be relatively rare,
Kaefer said.
While Microsoft will charge for some of its licensing
arrangements, the company does not expect the new programs to
generate significant revenue.
Stacy Cowley writes for IDG News Service