Microsoft Patent: More Money for Less Functions

[ Thanks to Britta Wuelfing for this
link. ]

“The patent text, in all its arcane language, gets to
the bottom line of a concept not totally unfamiliar to Microsoft:
make selected portions and functionality of the operating system
unavailable to users or limit their ability to add software
applications or device drivers until an “agreed upon sum of money”
is paid to “‘unlock’ or otherwise make available the restricted
functionality.” The patent seekers see this as a safeguard against
the following situation: “One problem inherent in open architecture
systems is they are generally licensed with complete use rights
and/or functionality that may be beyond the need or desire of the
system purchaser… [so that] users with limited needs pay the same
rate for these systems as those with universal
needs.””

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