Subject: I oppose the IETF approval of the RedPhone patent on a TLS authorization standard.

From: "Steven C. Morreale, M.D./M.P.H." <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 09 Feb 2009 02:29:16 -0500

To Whom It May Concern:

The Free Software Foundation (FSF) just made me aware of a proposal that
requires our immediate attention.

I am a user who depends on the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF)
and the Internet Engineering Steering Group (IESG) to evaluate new
proposals for standards that make sure I am not encumbered by patents or
any other sort of restriction preventing free software users such as
myself and programmers from participating in the world we define.

In February 2006, a standard for "TLS authorization" was introduced in
the IETF for consideration. Very late in the discussion, a company
called RedPhone Security disclosed that they applied for a patent which
would need to be licensed to anyone wanting to practice the standard.
After this disclosure, the proposal was rejected.

Despite claims that RedPhone have offered a license for implementation
of this protocol, users of this protocol would still be threatened by
the patent.

The IETF should continue to oppose this standard until RedPhone provides
a royalty-free license for all users.

Thank you.

~steve

Steven C. Morreale, M.D./M.P.H.
Geriatric Medicine Fellow
Emory University
Division of Geriatric Medicine and Gerontology
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