# To subscribers of the xforms list from spl@ncmir.ucsd.edu :
I suspect a lot of folks have seen this on /. or NTK but in case
you've missed it:
[via NewsScan Daily]
PICTURE THIS: COMPANY CLAIMS JPEG PATENT
Forgent Networks, based in Austin, Texas, is claiming that a patent
it holds covering a "coding system for reducing redundancy" directly
applies to the compression technique used in the creation of JPEG
images. The patent originally was granted to Compression Labs in
1986 and later acquired by Forgent, which says it will now seek
licensing revenue from companies that use JPEG "in all fields of
use," with the sole exception of the satellite broadcast
business. Last month, Forgent sealed a licensing deal with Sony, and
a company spokeswoman says it's in discussions with several other
companies, but did not disclose names. In a statement published last
week, Forgent said the patent could apply to companies that make
"devices used to compress, store, manipulate, print or transmit
digital images." The licensing plan has sparked concern among many
users of digital imaging technology. "It's sort of an ambushing kind
of thing," says one digital photography hobbyist. (Wired.com 19 Jul
2002)
http://www.wired.com/news/business/0,1367,53981,00.html
I'm not sure how this affects the image library at this point.
Ugh. Software patents.
spl
_________________________________________________
To unsubscribe, send the message "unsubscribe" to
xforms-request@bob.usuhs.mil or see
http://bob.usuhs.mil/mailserv/xforms.html
XForms Home Page: http://world.std.com/~xforms
List Archive: http://bob.usuhs.mil/mailserv/list-archives/
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Fri Jul 19 2002 - 12:32:38 EDT