[NTLUG:Discuss] IP idemnification - a concern?

[Robert Citek]

Saw this on another list and was just wondering if this is a  
legitimate concern, fear mongering, or extortion?

<quote>
Q.  What is intellectual property (IP) indemnification as it relates  
to software?
A.  IP indemnification is about software makers protecting their  
customers from legal costs and damages suffered as a result of  
litigation brought on by IP infringement — a lawsuit filed against  
the software user for violation of a patent, trade secret, copyright,  
or trademark. But to truly assess the risk involved, users need to  
consider a broader view of IP indemnification. They need to consider  
a vendor's IP management practices, including
indemnification; internal IP management processes; how the vendor  
engages in IP protection; and the vendor's IP trade practices. While  
it's tempting to equate IP indemnification as an issue between  
conventionally licensed software versus open source software, that's  
definitely not the case. Users should examine the indemnification  
policies of every software vendor because any vendor may do a good or  
poor job of protecting its customers.
</quote>

   http://download.microsoft.com/download/d/9/1/d911a75c- 
deda-4531-8660-ff2daab6dc6d/IDCConnect.pdf

I would imagine an IT manager's reaction would be, "we can't use Open  
Source because it might expose us to IP litigation."  Is that an  
accurate conclusion?

Regards,
- Robert
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