Nick Johnson, lead developer at Ethereum Name Service (ENS) has called out Unstoppable Domains for restricting trade in the Web3 domain sphere.
“As a result of our commitment to these values, we have not pursued patents on our work. By contrast, Unstoppable Domains has begun doing so, despite stating it supports open innovation,” he stated.
In a series of posts on X (formerly Twitter), Johnson emphasizes how ENS fosters an open-field environment for development on its network.
“All of our work is licensed under open-source licenses, and all our standards are publicly available for anyone to implement.”
However, Johnson argues that Unstoppable Domains has started pursuing patents on its work.
A patent bestows legal rights to an invention, granting privileges to the individual or entity without interference from others seeking to replicate, utilize, or sell the innovation.
Johnson indicates that ENS will not be placing patent applications on works anytime soon. “ENS remains committed to ensuring open innovation in web3,” he stated.
“We believe in building extensible, long-lasting systems open to all to build upon and contribute towards strengthening the blockchain domain ecosystem.”
Speaking to BeInCrypto, Fred Hsu, co-founder and CEO of D3, asserts that the focal point is not merely seeking patents for their own endeavors but rather concerning the endeavors of others:
“The issue at hand isn’t that UD pursues patents on their own work, but rather that they are supposedly pursuing patents on the works of others and then using those patents in bad faith while advocating for an open ecosystem and cooperationn between the different players in web3.
Yet, Johnson points out that Unstoppable Domains asserts it is ‘pledging’ its inaugural patent to the Web3 Domain Alliance.
However, since this statement was made through a press release, Johnson argues that it can’t be genuinely held accountable.
“UD has subsequently issued a press release ‘pledging’ its first patent to the Web3 Domain Alliance, an industry group founded and run by Unstoppable Domains. We appreciate the sentiment behind this, but regrettably, press releases are not legally binding.”
Source: beincrypto.com