"Tsunakawa, Takayuki" <tsunakawa.takay@jp.fujitsu.com> writes:
> From: Nico Williams [mailto:nico@cryptonector.com]
>> ... But that might reduce the
>> size of the community, or lead to a fork.
> Yes, that's one unfortunate future, which I don't want to happen of
> course. I believe PostgreSQL should accept patent for further
> evolution, because PostgreSQL is now a popular, influential software
> that many organizations want to join.
The core team has considered this matter, and has concluded that it's
time to establish a firm project policy that we will not accept any code
that is known to be patent-encumbered. The long-term legal risks and
complications involved in doing that seem insurmountable, given the
community's amorphous legal nature and the existing Postgres license
wording (neither of which are open for negotiation here). Furthermore,
Postgres has always been very friendly to creation of closed-source
derivatives, but it's hard to see how inclusion of patented code would
not cause serious problems for those. The potential benefits of
accepting patented code just don't seem to justify trying to navigate
these hazards.
regards, tom lane