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In an open letter to Novell’s CEO, Bruce Hovsepian, Bruce Perens dismisses Hovespian’s statement, made in his own open letter, that Novell does not agree with Microsoft’s assertion that Linux users are infringing on Microsoft’s intellectual property by saying:

Let’s be truthful about software patents: there can be no non-trivial computer program, either proprietary or Free, that does not use methods that are claimed in software patents currently in force and unlicensed for use in that program.

He then goes on to say:

Several years ago, attorney Daniel Ravicher, now of the Software Freedom Law Center, reported finding 283 patents with claims that could read on the Linux kernel. That kernel represents only a few percent of the overall collection of software in Novell/SuSE Linux. It is likely that there are many thousands of unlitigated potential infringements within the entire Novell system. Only a minority of those patents are owned by Microsoft, your recent agreement does nothing to defend you from the others.

I believe I understand what Mr. Perens is saying, but I question the wisdom of going on record as agreeing that Linux users are infringing on Microsoft’s intellectual property. I predict that this will come back to bite him in the ass in some future Microsoft legal action…