March 3, 2015 – Open Invention Network (OIN), the largest patent non-aggression community in history, announced today that Vodafone Group Plc has joined OIN as a licensee.
“Wireless carriers know that inventive new mobile applications help to spur growth and they increasingly are looking to leverage open source software and collaborative development as a source for this innovation,” said Keith Bergelt, CEO of Open Invention Network. “We appreciate Vodafone’s leadership in joining OIN, and believe that other carriers, large and small, will see the wisdom in Vodafone’s approach in supporting patent non-aggression in Linux.”
Luke Ibbetson, Head of Vodafone Group R&D said, “We look forward to participating in the Open Invention Network. Many of the services and apps that our customers depend on every day have been developed using open source software and we look forward to helping safeguard its future.
More than 1,250 organizations worldwide have joined the OIN community. Community members cross-license Linux System patents to one another on a royalty-free basis. Patents owned by Open Invention Network are similarly licensed royalty-free to any organization that agrees not to assert its patents against the Linux System. The OIN license can be signed online at http://www.j-oin.com/.
About Open Invention Network
Open Invention Network (OIN) is the largest patent non-aggression community in history and supports freedom of action in Linux as a key element of open source software. Funded by Google, IBM, NEC, Philips, Red Hat, Sony and SUSE, OIN has more than 1,250 OIN community members and owns more than 950 global patents and applications. Member cross-licenses and OIN patent licenses are available royalty free to any party that joins the OIN community.
For more information, visit http://www.openinventionnetwork.com.