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Square Joins Patent Protection Group Founded by Red Hat and IBM to Promote Crypto

Tue, 09/14/2021 - 06:40
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Alex Dovbnya
Square is leading the effort to eradicate patent trolling in the crypto industry
Square Joins Patent Protection Group Founded by Red Hat and IBM to Promote Crypto
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Jack Dorsey’s payments firm Square has become part of the Open Invention Network (OIN), the biggest patent protection consortium that was founded by the likes of IBM, Red Hat, and Sony all the way back in 2005, Bloomberg reports

The goal is to avoid patent troll fights within the burgeoning cryptocurrency industry.

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Square’s counsel Max Sills points to the fact that many crypto developers are at risk of lawsuits over intellectual property rights:

We’re in just such a rapid time of growth, so many amazing things are happening without patents. We want to avoid long-drawn-out legal battles.

Last September, Square also formed the Cryptocurrency Open Patent Alliance (COPA), which boasts such prominent members as Ark and Coinbase.     

As reported by U.Today, the COPA took self-proclaimed Satoshi Craig Wright to court over his claim that he owns the leading cryptocurrency’s white paper.

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About the author

Alex Dovbnya (aka AlexMorris) is a cryptocurrency expert, trader and journalist with extensive experience of covering everything related to the burgeoning industry — from price analysis to Blockchain disruption. Alex authored more than 1,000 stories for U.Today, CryptoComes and other fintech media outlets. He’s particularly interested in regulatory trends around the globe that are shaping the future of digital assets, can be contacted at alex.dovbnya@u.today.