Ballmer: Linux users owe Microsoft

[frizshizzle]

He says the open-source operating system infringes on his company's intellectual property

In comments confirming the open-source community's suspicions, Microsoft Corp. CEO Steve Ballmer today declared his belief that the Linux operating system infringes on Microsoft's intellectual property.

In a question-and-answer session after his keynote speech at the Professional Association for SQL Server (PASS) conference in Seattle, Ballmer said Microsoft was motivated to sign a deal with SUSE Linux distributor Novell Inc. earlier this month because Linux "uses our intellectual property" and Microsoft wanted to "get the appropriate economic return for our shareholders from our innovation."

(Open-source fans later fired back with comments of their own about Ballmer's assertion.)

"Only customers that use SUSE have paid properly for intellectual property from Microsoft," he said. "We are willing to do a deal with Red Hat and other Linux distributors." The deal with SUSE Linux "is not exclusive," Ballmer added.

somehow this feels so predictable. anyone remember SCO

Source: http://www.computerworld.com/action/...c=it_blogwatch