[lug] Microsoft charging fee for each digicam made

[Nick Golder]

On 2003-12-06 18:55 -0700, Timothy C. Klein wrote:
> * Hugh Brown (hugh at math.byu.edu) wrote:
> > On Fri, 2003-12-05 at 15:57, Ferdinand Schmid wrote:
> > > So now Microsoft starts charging for every digital camera made...
> > > Maybe they
> > > will also start charging for every hard drive or floppy disk made?
> > > 
> > > See more info below,
> > > Ferdinand
> > > 
> > > -----------------------------------------------------------------------
> > > ---------
> > > 
> > > Below article was taken from the home page of:
> > > http://www.dpreview.com
> > > 
> > 
> > 
> >  I find it interesting that MS is now using their patents to get
> > revenue by litigation.
> 
> I don't.  They make plenty of revenue without patents.  They don't file
> for them to protect a product -- their monopoly does that for them
> better than anything else could.  The patents are gravy -- wait until FAT is
> so widespread that people who had been using it for free can't imagine
> switching.  THEN decide to enforce the patent and require licensing.
> Just to add a little more gravy to the revenue stream, and also as an
> anti-competitive cudgel.

Aren't their legal implications against MS for introducing this in an
already established market?  I guess this could be the case of the GIF
syndrome.  

-- 
-Nick Golder