Munich's city officials have decided to move ahead with
their migration project from Microsoft Windows to open source
Linux.
Munich, Germany's third largest city, will proceed with its plan
to equip all 14,000 computers in its public administration with
Linux and other open source office applications, despite concerns
of possible software patent infringements raised in the debate over
new European Union (EU) patent legislation.
"We commissioned a group of legal experts to study the
implications of using Linux ahead of proposed EU legislation, and
they came to the conclusion that there is only a very small risk of
software patent infringement," said Stefan Hauf, a spokesman for
the City of Munich. "The experts told us that almost every user of
software faces some risk."
Prior to its decision to go ahead with Linux, Munich also held
talks with the federal government, which has launched a programme
to support the use of open source software in the country's public
sector, according to Hauf.
Although Munich declared its support for open source a year ago,
its roll-out programme, called LiMux, ground to a halt in August
when the city launched an investigation into legal and financial
issues associated with the migration.
Munich mayor Christian Ude's administration asked legal experts
to determine whether proposed EU legislation, known as the
"computer-implemented inventions" directive, could cause legal
problems for the city when it comes into force.
The EU overarching patent legislation would bring into line the
different interpretations being given by different national courts
throughout Europe.
The issue has been highly contentious, with supporters of open
source and free software asserting that copyright laws are enough
to protect business innovations and calling for all patents to be
outlawed, while large businesses push for a US-style approach that
allows for so-called business methods to be patented.
"I think it's really wise that Munich decided to conduct its own
legal investigation into possible software patent infringements and
move ahead," said Gary Barnett, an analyst from Ovum. "This sends
out a powerful signal to other groups that want to deploy open
source software now and not wait for the EU to end its debate on
patent legislation."
Munich aims to begin migrating its computer systems to Linux
toward the end of this year or early next and complete the
migration project by the end of 2008.
John Blau writes for IDG New Service