Red Hat has led and continues to lead the open source industry in promoting innovation and making free and open source software easier to consume. This includes providing our clients with the most comprehensive open source intellectual property protections through our Open Source Assurance program. Our confidence in our technology and protections for customers remains strong and has not wavered.

Red Hat’s Open Source Assurance protections focus on our clients’ business continuity as well as indemnification against claims raised by any holder of software patents. Part of our Open Source Assurance is an intellectual property warranty, a promise by Red Hat to replace its software if there is an intellectual property issue. This provides customers with assurances of uninterrupted use of the technology solution. Protecting our customers is a top priority, and we take it very seriously. Read more here.

The reality is that the community development approach of free and open source code represents a healthy development paradigm, which, when viewed from the perspective of pending lawsuits related to intellectual property, is at least as safe as proprietary software. We are also aware of no patent lawsuit against Linux. Ever. Anywhere.

In addition, the Open Invention Network provides a patent safe harbor for the Linux environment. OIN, of which Red Hat was a founding member, also has an independent patent portfolio to help protect and maintain the pro-competitive effect of this open environment.

See what the Computer & Communications Industry Association (CCIA) is saying here.

See the Open Invention Network’s (OIN) comment here.

See Gartner research entitled “Microsoft Patent Claims Pose No Immediate Risk for Users” here.