Classic freetard maneuver today. Red Hat, king of all freetard software makers, put out a statement saying patents are bad and are stifling innovation. (Reprint by Steven J. Vaughan-Cut-and-Paste is here.) Red Hat also filed an amicus brief in some court case where someone is trying to patent a business method.

Says Red Hat:

“Today the patent system is, if anything, a hindrance to open source. Developers face the risk that the original code they have written in good faith could be deemed to infringe an existing software patent.”

Except that:

“Despite the hindrances of the patent system, open source continues to expand at an exponential rate.”

And, um:

“Given the litigation risk, some open source companies, including Red Hat, acquire patents for the sole purpose of asserting them defensively in the event they are faced with a future lawsuit.”

To see a list of Red Hat patents and patent applications, go here and here.

FWIW, note how many of these filings contain the phrase “methods and systems” in the title. Ahem.