Historic Timeline & Key Milestones - Open Invention Network

2005 – Present

In the early 2000s, the idea for OIN was born. It was the 1st organization of its kind to create a new model where patents are openly shared in a collaborative environment to foster innovation in Linux and adjacent Open Source technologies. In no time, OIN became the largest Patent Non-Aggression community in history.

October 2005

OIN Funding Members join OIN

OIN incorporates as a Limited Liability Company (LLC)

November 2005

Jerry Rosenthal becomes 1st CEO

OIN Portfolio Growth

7 patents & 21 patent applications were purchased from Commerce One and transferred to OIN, as a key part of an early portfolio

Linux System Definition starts with Tables 1 & 2

February 2008

Keith Bergelt becomes CEO

September 2009

Defense Patents Purchased

OIN acquires 22 defensive patents from AST to protect Open Source from patent aggressors

November 2010

New Associate Member Program

OIN introduces a new Associate Member Program; Recruits Canonical as its 1st Associate Member. Later, Google & TomTom become Associate Members

May 2012

Linux System Definition Expands with Table 3

October 2012

Linux System Definition Expands with Table 4

February 2013

OIN grows to 500 members

September 2013

Linux System Definition Expands with Table 5

November 2013

Google becomes an OIN Funding Member

December 2013

OIN extends Linux’s protective network to cover OpenStack technologies

March 2014

Linux System Definition Expands with Table 6

1st Asian Legal Network (ALN) Inaugural Conference

OIN, Free Software Foundation Europe (FSFE) & the Linux Foundation launch & host the 1st Asian Legal Network (ALN) Inaugural Conference

September 2014

OIN surpasses 1,000 members

May 2016

Toyota becomes an OIN Funding Member

July 2016

OIN membership grows to 2,000

July 2017

Linux System Defintion Expands with Table 8

August 2018

OIN Funding Members unanimously support General Public License (GPL) Cooperation Agreement

October 2018

Microsoft joins OIN

Microsoft announced its OIN membership, contributing 60,000 patents to the community; 50 of the “Top 10 Global Companies” based on market value are now community members

December 2018

Alibaba & Ant Financial join OIN

Alibaba & Ant Financial announced their membership with OIN, moving Open Source forward in the Fintech industry

In the News: TechRepublic

TechRepublic names OIN among “The 8 Biggest Open Source Milestones in 2018”

January 2019

Linux System Definition Expands with Table 9

In the News: Security Boulivard

OIN makes Security Boulevard’s list of “The Top 10 FOSS Legal Developments in 2018”

June 2019

OIN membership grows to 3,000

OIN exceeds 3,000 members, following 2 years of 50% growth

November 2019

OIN partners with IBM, Microsoft & the Linux Foundation

OIN partners with IBM, Microsoft & the Linux Foundation to fund a multi-million-dollar, multi-year initiative with Unified Patents’ Open Source Zone to further protect Linux Open Source from Patent Assertion Entities (PAE)

February 2020

OIN supports Software Heritage Foundation

OIN announces it will sponsor & support Software Heritage Foundation, which has more than 6 billion unique Open Source files archived

October 2020

Linux System Definition Expands with Table 9

8th Linux System Definition Expands with Table 9 to include #exFat among 520 new Open Source Software (OSS) packages, bringing OIN’s total software packages to 3,300

November 2020

OIN Celebrates their 15th year anniversary

Compounded Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) for licensees represent over 50%; OIN’s network includes members from 100 of 195 countries, 20 industry & 11 sectors based on the Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS)

January 2021

In the News: Patent Invention Magazine

Patent Invention Magazine covers our 15^th anniversary celebration & our commitment to protecting the greater Open Source community

OIN Worldwide Membership exceeds 3,500

OIN’s worldwide membership reaches over 3,500

February 2021

Barclays & TD Bank Join OIN

Wells Fargo Patent Troll Case has the finance world all aquiver; Barclays and TD Bank announce their membership with OIN

March 2021

In the News: The Fintech Times

The Fintech Times reports how OIN protects innovation, specifically for Banking & Financial Services

July 2021

In the News: Tech Company News

Tech Company News interviews our CEO Keith Bergelt about the state of Open Source

September 2021

Cryptocurrency Non-Aggression Pact on Patent Suits

Bloomberg breaks the news that Square “Joins Cryptocurrency Non-Aggression Pact on Patent Suits”; Over 12 other international & industry publications cover the story

January 2022

Starting in 2022 OIN welcomes an influx of Banking & Financial Service company members

Linux System Definition expands with Table 11

Linux System Definition expands with Table 11 to add 337 new Open Source Software (OSS) packages, bringing OIN’s total software packages to 3,730

December 2022

Amazon Joins OIN

Amazon becomes an OIN Member & commits its entire portfolio to OIN

OIN publishes reports about the rise of patent litigation in Retail & eCommerce, and Banking & Financial Services

In the News: Dealmakers

Dealmakers conducts an in-depth interview with OIN’s CEO, Keith Bergelt, about the significant changes in Big Tech & whether the fundamental relevance of patents and their future value in the space is shifting

Unified Patents Open Source Zone patent challenges to date

Unified Patents Open Source Zone has challenged 50 patents so far, with an excellent success rate, invalidating 34, determining 7 to be flawed & 3 are awaiting review