News
Microsoft Ups IP Protection for OEM, ISV Partners
Microsoft Corp. recently added protections to its indemnification protection
for original equipment manufacturers and independent software vendor partners
to help shield them from intellectual property lawsuits that may arise in relation
to their distribution of Microsoft products.
OEMs, OEM distributors, system builders and ISV Royalty partners are now all
protected for trade secret claims. System Builders have been given new benefits,
including patent, copyright, damages and settlement fees and no-cap legal defense
fees. OEMs and OEM distributors have also been given no-cap legal defense fees
plus damages and settlement fees.
Microsoft said the coverage extends to future versions of its software, such
as Longhorn.
'This is a part of our ongoing efforts to respond to the requests of customers
and partners," said Brad Smith, senior vice president and general counsel
at Microsoft. "Our partners are telling us that IP issues are becoming
increasingly complex, and they appreciate that Microsoft stands behind them
and our products."
Resellers, distributors, retail and OEM embedded retain their current coverage.
To view a chart outlining the coverage per partner type, go here.
About the Author
Becky Nagel is vice president of AI for 1105 Media, where she specializes in training internal and external customers on maximizing their business potential via a wide variety of generative AI technologies as well as developing cutting-edge AI content and events. She's the author of "ChatGPT Prompt 101 Guide for Business Uses," regularly leads research studies on generative AI business usage, and serves as the director of AI Boardroom, a new resource for C-level executives looking to excel in the AI era. Prior to her current position she was a technical leader for 1105 Media's Web, advertising and production teams as well as editorial director for a suite of enterprise technology publications, including serving as founding editor of PureAI.com. She has 20 years of enterprise technology journalism experience, and regularly speaks and writes about generative AI, AI, edge computing and other cutting-edge technologies. She can be reached at [email protected].