Decades-long Linux ownership dispute effectively dead after Xinuos appeal rejected — US Court of Appeals halts the legal wrangling over IBM’s and Red Hat’s use of Project Monterey UNIX code
A decades-long dispute over the ownership of Linux looks like it is over. Earlier this month the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit rejected Xinuos’ continued claims that IBM and Red Hat improperly contributed jointly‑developed Project Monterey UNIX code to Linux.
A long-standing dispute over Linux ownership appears to be coming to an end after Xinuos' appeal was rejected by the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. Xinuos had claimed that IBM and Red Hat improperly contributed jointly-developed Project Monterey UNIX code to Linux, seeking potential damages and royalties. However, the court ruled that the case was too old to relitigate, as the claim was framed as licensing but was actually about ownership, which is no longer time-barred.
Xinuos plans to seek a full-bench rehearing, but with only a 0.03% chance of success according to IBM's legal representatives. This resolution should bring some clarity and peace of mind to the computing community, as well as open the door for other companies contributing code to open-source projects to move forward without the distraction of this contentious litigation.
Written by urgent.news from Tom's Hardware's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
