Hi all, In a close (4:3) race, the OGB voted to publish the following response to Sun's policy about the OpenSolaris trademark (for the record, those in favour were: Alan, Ben, Steve, and Rich; against were Casper, Glynn, and Keith).
We realise that this statement is a little late in coming, but given that we had committed to responding, we thought it better to release it late rather than never. Following is the text of our statement: The OpenSolaris Governing Board (OGB) received Sun's trademark policy and forwarded it to the community for comment. The community's reaction to Sun's decision to assert its rights as the OpenSolaris trademark owner to adopt the trademark's use for the OpenSolaris project known as "Project Indiana" has been mixed, but a substantial portion of the community's members have expressed disappointment and disapproval, not only of the decision, but the manner by which it was made. At least one prominant member resigned from the community in protest over Sun's actions. The manner by which Sun made its decision was a violation of the spirit of the OpenSolaris community's principles: the decision was made without consultation with the OpenSolaris community, nor its elected representatives, the OGB. Despite subsequent negotiations between Sun and the OGB, Sun's decision remains unchanged. While we are disappointed that Sun has chosen to ignore the community's feelings in this matter, we accept that Sun owns the OpenSolaris trademark, and as such can legally use it how it likes. To end on a positive note, we are pleased that Sun has been receptive to discussions about community use of the OpenSolaris trademark. We would also like to reach out to Sun and encourage a better working relationship so that these types of incidents do not occur in the future. Finally, we look forward to working with Sun and the rest of the community in building the best OS on the planet. Cheers, -- Rich Teer, SCSA, SCNA, SCSECA, OGB member CEO, My Online Home Inventory URLs: http://www.rite-group.com/rich http://www.linkedin.com/in/richteer http://www.myonlinehomeinventory.com
