Patent Commons Project

The Patent Commons Project was set up by the Open Source Development Labs (OSDL) in 2005 to provide a central repository for intellectual property for the benefit of the Linux / open source community. The commons consists of:

• An online library/database of patent pledges and other legal documents (such as vendor indemnification programmes)
• Software licenses and patents being held on behalf of the open source community.

By pooling the intellectual property resources donated by many companies and individuals, the open source community can also better protect itself against proprietary companies claiming / buying patent rights over their software.

Sources: Website, Press release, Wikipedia