Now that Microsoft's C# programming language has been approved by the International Standards Organization (ISO)--and the company's Common Language Infrastructure (CLI) is on its way to passing--one question looms large: Will Microsoft use its intellectual property rights (IPR) to make it difficult for developers to comply with these standards.
If Microsoft uses those IPR rights to erect obstacles--in the form of royalties or denials of licenses--the result could well be the antithesis of a standard. Compliant products might be available only from one company--Microsoft. Imagine the color red established as the international standard for stop signs, but the color is only available from one company.
According to Microsoft, third-party developers who want to develop or deploy an implementation of C# development tools and CLI-compliant virtual machines, which are part of the .Net framework, must enter into a reasonable and non-discriminatory (RAND) license agreement with Microsoft. That's the short answer.
|