Microsoft is deciding how to handle a very unique issue, after a Chinese software company released a Ubuntu-based Linux operating system named Ylmf OS that very closely mimics Windows XP.
The OS is technically Ubunutu 9.10, but Rain Forest Wind Guangdong Computer Technology, a software and Internet company in China, re-skinned it to mimic XP.
Microsoft's legal options are murky, if the company wants to try and shut down the copycat Linux OS. Copyright infringement and intellectual property rights remain unclear. To make matters worse for Microsoft, the intellectual property protections in China are not a serious concern in their court system.
At first glance, Ylmf OS doesn't seem to violate Microsoft's source code patents -- instead, Microsoft will likely argue copyright violations. The infringing software company is based in a city inside the Guangdong province in China, which has enforced IP rights a bit more than other areas of China, but Microsoft still has a tough road to travel.
Microsoft admitted in the past that pirates should steal Microsoft-made software, and it is the company's responsibility to try and figure out how to make consumers pay. However, the relative lawlessness of software piracy in China has the company concerned, which led to another crackdown -- this time not in Microsoft's favor.
Rain Forest Wind previously marketed and sold copies of Windows XP, but Microsoft forced the company to stop. Microsoft has had similar problems with Chinese companies in the past, but has still found it difficult to punish pirates.
Along with waiting to see what Microsoft does in this case, I'm also interested to hear the response from the Canonical Ubuntu development team. Will they be happy to see how its OS is being used, or will they frown upon Ylmf OS?
