> Surely the formal standardization process precludes an Oracle-style attack on implementors...?
Surely is a strong word. Who knows where this train is going to end up once it derails? They surely offered up permissive patent licensing, and all of those patents have expired by now anyway, but would they have bothered to sign away copyrights that they didn't think they had? Copyright lasts 70 years from the death of the author, so while the patents are all ancient history, the copyright, if such a thing exists, would certainly still be active and there would be decades of infringement to pursue.
Surely is a strong word. Who knows where this train is going to end up once it derails? They surely offered up permissive patent licensing, and all of those patents have expired by now anyway, but would they have bothered to sign away copyrights that they didn't think they had? Copyright lasts 70 years from the death of the author, so while the patents are all ancient history, the copyright, if such a thing exists, would certainly still be active and there would be decades of infringement to pursue.