ICANN Takes Over Time Zone Database; Dares Astrolabe To Sue
Found on Techdirt on Tuesday, 18 October 2011
You probably heard a few weeks ago about how an astrology software company, Astrolabe, claimed it now controlled the copyright for the historical time zone database that nearly every Linux and Unix system uses to set clocks to local time... and was suing the two individuals who maintain the database.
"We are aware of the lawsuit," [Kim Davies, a technical manager at ICANN] said. "We believe it's important to continue the operation of the database. We'll deal with any legal matters as they arise."
Threatening two individuals who maintained the time zone for free with a copyright lawsuit is one thing; suddenly facing ICANN is another. For some reason I don't think that the trolls over at Astrolabe will file the suit now. Which would be a perfect example of bullying the little guys while running away from those who actually want to deal with your threats.