Home - Open Invention Network

Recently Joined the OIN Community

About OIN

OIN is a defensive patent pool and community of patent non-aggression which enables freedom of action in Linux. Learn about OIN’s mission, team, supporters, and more.

OIN Community

Over 2,000 organizations have joined OIN. In support of patent non-aggression. For free access to OIN’s patents. And to gain royalty free access to Linux System patents of other OIN participants.

Our License Agreement

Available to all parties, a completed OIN license agreement provides entry to the OIN community and its benefits. Review the agreement, learn more, and sign up online.

OIN Linux System

The Linux System is the set of technologies in which OIN participants agree to cross-license patents to another. A shared zone of patent non-aggression to promote collaboration.

Press Room

OIN enables freedom of action in open source and Linux, which have been great sources of innovation. Find press releases, coverage, FAQs, resources and more here.

Community Initiatives

OIN supports complementary community initiatives that are good for our community and open source software.

Press Mentions

December 03, 2018
The 8 biggest open source milestones in 2018

October 24, 2018
What's the deal with Microsoft's open-source friendly patents?

Read More >>

What people are saying…

Linux plays an important role at TomTom as the core of all our Portable Navigation Devices. We believe that by becoming an Open Invention Network licensee, we encourage Linux development and foster innovation in a technical community that benefits everyone.

Peter Spours, TomTom

Linux, and more broadly open source software, is a foundational technology in the desktop, mobile, networking, cloud and embedded computing environments. We are committed to open solutions that promote advances in all of the sectors that depend on advanced x86 and ARM platforms. Joining Open Invention Network is another way we are demonstrating our commitment to open innovation and collaboration.

Richard Brown, VIA Technologies

We view Open Invention Network as one of the key methods through which open source leaders and innovators can deter patent aggression. “We are committed to freedom of action in open source, and have noted OIN’s efforts to actively defend and enable the Linux ecosystem.

Jane Silber, Canonical

The OIN membership supports Kontron on many levels. With our focus on building out our IoT framework, it makes perfect sense to be a part of an open source community that protects the rights of all members within the community, especially to reduce our patent risk around Linux related technology.

Jens Wiegand, Kontron

Linux and open source are critical building blocks in today’s consumer electronics. By joining the Open Invention Network, we are helping ensure the ongoing development of open solutions that directly lead to major innovations in consumer electronics products. We are pleased to be part of the Open Invention Network community.

Stephen Evans, Wolfson Microelectronics

As a leader in the development of intelligent automobiles, Daimler is committed to offering the highest-quality products across our portfolio. By joining the Open Invention Network, we are demonstrating our continued commitment to innovation, and supporting it with patent non-aggression in Linux.

Ralf Lamberti, Daimler

We applaud OIN’s efforts to promote patent non-aggression in the cloud by adding the OpenStack packages to its Linux System definition. The OpenStack Foundation Board of Directors appreciates that the rapidly-growing OIN community has been, and is now explicitly, supporting freedom of action in the cloud of the future that OpenStack has been formed to enable.

Alan Clark, OpenStack Foundation

The last thing we want in the DLT [Distributed Ledger Technology] ecosystem is as replay of the smart phone ‘patent wars’. Patent disputes are the ‘sport of kings’; it is expensive and to be avoided.

Marc KaufmanReedSmith

The ecosystem in which we operate is changing rapidly. Innovation that was once squarely housed within the community and exclusively oriented towards its collective betterment is increasingly being conducted across a growing number of companies around the world. That growth is exciting, but there is no denying that with it comes a complex array of actors and interests, some of whom may be more opportunistic in their thinking when it comes to intellectual property rights. Ensuring that permission…

James MurdockBlockstream

OIN protects the open-source community through a patent cross-license for Linux and related open-source technologies. The license is free and available to companies, organizations, and individual developers if they agree not to assert their own patents against Linux.

Chris DiBonaGoogle

Recently Joined the OIN Community

About OIN

OIN Community

Our License Agreement

OIN Linux System

Press Room

Community Initiatives

Press Mentions

What people are saying…