AutoZone wants SCO case put on hold

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Disagree: RH vs SCO is important.

Essentially, Redhat's case is to prevent SCO from threatening Redhat's customers.

Say SCO loses against Novell? That loss simply says that SCO doesn't own the UNIX IP, which SCO claims is in Linux. Such loss would go a long way towards ending the suit against IBM. Those two cases are dependent. I agree with that order.

However, SCO still owns IP of their own: namely their UNIX to Linux compatibility libraries, which are the core in their case against Autozone. If the first two cases fall to other than SCO; RH v., and v. Autozone still have a purpose!

Redhat v. is important. The case limits SCO's potential future suits. Redhat's case must fall to Redhat so that SCO cannot willy-nilly sue all of the overlap between their former customers and Redhat's in the event of an Autozone win. Since SCO unequivocably owns the rights to their compatibility libraries, even if they don't own the UNIX IP; winning Autozone would allow them to sue by innuendo, if Redhat v. is not won by Redhat. Redhat v. would have a declaration that Redhat is not distributing SCO's IP: the compatibility libraries, in Redhat's core distribution. See the limitation?

That leaves SCO v. Autozone. v. Autozone is only important to Autozone. Either Autozone violated their SCO license for the SCO compatibility product or they didn't. The earlier Redhat case would narrow the scope of future Autozone-like cases. No longer are all Redhat customers at risk, only Autozone and their former-SCO customer kin.

If all three of the earlier cases are won by other than SCO, then Autozone could still be lost as it hinges on Autozone's individual behavior. Though the press would play such a loss as a blow to Linux, the truth is: only SCO's former customers are at risk and only if they've left SCO and only if they violated the license for SCO's remaining IP. SCO will have free reign to pull to court each and every one of those former customers as SCO spirals into the abyss.

What SCO won't be able to do; if they lose the all earlier cases:

1) Claim UNIX IP violations
2) Use IBM funds to fund further lawsuits.
3) Sue all of Redhat's customers for improperly using the compatibility product simply because they are Redhat customers. Doesn't stop SCO from suing, say, Connectiva's customer-base or Novell's over the compatibility libraries, unless those companies also seek declaratory judgement as well.

No, all three cases are important to Linux at large. Even if all three are won, SCO still has a case against Autozone. SCO might even win, if Autozone did something wrong, and if after three losses there's enough remaining of SCO to sue anyone.

Who says funerals aren't entertainment?

Posted by: John Le'Brecage   Posted on: 04/28/04 You are currently: a Guest | Members login | Terms of Use

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