Novell Feels Open-Source Steam

If the agreement had gone no further, there would be no controversy. But Microsoft also agreed not to sue Novell customers over alleged patent violations. Because Linux is developed by so many people at so many firms, violations of intellectual property rights are fairly common and can easily lead to litigation. And since Microsoft is a formidable opponent, the threat of a lawsuit by the software giant can scare away potential customers.

The problem for some members of the Free Software Foundation, which is revising the GPL, is this: Microsoft has singled out Novell and its customers for patent protection. Other developers could still be sued, and that is seen as unfair and a violation of the spirit, if not the letter, of the existing GPL, says Bernard Golden, CEO of Navica, a systems integrator and publisher of an open-source-oriented newsletter.

If a restrictive provision of the GPL goes into effect, Novell will still be able to distribute its existing software, but it will, in theory, lose access to code written after it takes force.

More likely, says Golden, is a tactical retreat by Novell that would entail modifying its agreement with Microsoft.

Golden says the underlying cause of the conflict is an ongoing cultural divide within the open-source movement, between "pragmatists" who are pushing hard to make their software profitable and "ideologues" who believe software must be free.