[YBA] i4i vs MS?

[geoffrey mendelson]

On Aug 13, 2009, at 4:22 PM, Danny Lieberman wrote:

> Geoff
>
> IBM booked(s)  custom software development  as patent and IP  
> revenue.    By that definition Ness would have about 1BN revenue of  
> revenue from IP but as we both know - Ness doesn't have any IP....

Now you are confusing US accounting, copyright, patent and IP rules/ 
laws and Israeli ones.

It's a matter of definition. You see custom programing as selling  
work. (body shop) IBM sees it as developing IP which they then sell.  
It's a very different thing in law and has an affect on copyrights and  
licensing. For example, if I work for you to develop a program as an  
employee, or some other similar system, you own the IP rights to the  
developments and the copyrights (depending upon how well your lawer  
understands the law).

That would have to be listed as income due to services sold.

If I, per your specification, develop a solution to a problem and  
produce a program, documentation etc, I own the rights to the IP, the  
patent, trade secret and copyright rights. In that case they are  
correct to list it as IP, because that's what they sell.

I have no idea what Ness sells, except stories of 500 year old  
lizzards. :-)


> Buy the book on Amazon.

Not very likely.

> Re your IBM friend, look up post-hoc error on Wikipedia


I don't see how it is a post hoc error. It seems to me that they do it  
because they have to, and patent dedication is another way of making  
money. In the US, the reduction of taxes can be counted as revenue if  
used to offset taxes due. Or in other words, if you claim as an  
expense the full taxes due, you can claim the reduction as revenue,  
but you can't claim it if you post the reduced taxes. Since it came  
from the "sale" of IP, it can be listed as revenue from the sale of IP.

Geoff.
-- 
geoffrey mendelson N3OWJ/4X1GM
Jerusalem Israel geoffreymendelson at gmail.com