Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!batcomputer!cornell!uw-beaver!milton!sumax!thebes!polari!6sigma2
From: 6sigma2@polari.UUCP (Brian Matthews)
Newsgroups: comp.compression
Subject: Re: LZW is *not* safe to use
Message-ID: <3666@polari.UUCP>
Date: 4 Apr 91 19:22:44 GMT
References: <1991Apr2.003452.27382@alembic.acs.com> <29014:Apr215:25:5191@kramden.acf.nyu.edu> <1991Apr3.041358.6194@evax.arl.utexas.edu>
Organization: Seattle Online Public Unix (206) 328-4944
Lines: 13

In article <1991Apr3.041358.6194@evax.arl.utexas.edu> cs4304ak@evax.arl.utexas.edu (David Richardson) writes:
|Well, if IBM (or anyone else) who claims rights to LZW doesn't take
|positive action to enforce thier rights, the defendants in any future
|suit will have a good chance at proving that IBM (or whomever) abandoned
|thier patent.

Bzzzt.  Next contestant please.

Patent holders don't need to take positive (or any) action to retain their
patent for the full 17 years.  Copyrights and trademarks can lapse into
the public domain, but not patents.
-- 
Brian L. Matthews	6sigma2@polari.UUCP