The W3C, the standards-setting body that guides the Web’s future, has made quite a stir by proposing the inclusion of patented technology into its standards. This would mean that parts of the lingua franca of the Internet would be locked up in patents, the licensing of which could require cash outlay or be curtailed altogether by vindictive parties who don’t want their competitors using their intellectual property. Now, Apple computer has published a coherent and cogent statement explaining why this is a bad idea.

The promise of the Web is a common framework for exchange of information, with open access for a diverse pool of developers and users. Realization of this promise demands a licensing model that is likewise open and unencumbered by private rights. We believe that W3C membership should involve not only collaboration to develop standards, but also collaboration to ensure that those standards are, in fact, open and available to diverse users without charge.

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