Talk Of VIA Getting Back Into The x86 CPU Space With Zhaoxin

[phuclv]

QEMU emulates an x86 CPU, and it is open source software, no intel license required. How is this different from what is proposed here?

Who said that open source software is allowed to violate patents? There are lots of useful features that were never allowed to be implemented in OSS even though the specs for them are already opened, or reverse engineered

See What features cannot be implemented in open-source software due to legal restrictions (like patents and licenses)?

Does x86 emulation reduce the patent problems?

No. Intel has attempted to sue various companies that emulate the x86 instruction set like Transmeta. The latest one being MS though I don't know how MS can finally release Windows on ARM with x86 emulation, but probably it only support the old ISAs where patents already expired, along with other arrangements

Intel fires warning shots at Microsoft, claims x86 emulation is a patent minefield

I'm not a lawyer but you can follow these discussions

• Does it require a license to make a software or hardware emulator of some ISA like x86, ARM, AIM, etc.?
• Are software emulator implementations of patented instruction sets ISAs without a license legal?

[starshipeleven]

Who said that open source software is allowed to violate patents?

Who said that software emulators need to care about hardware patents.

The software emulator is just showing the same interface as the hardware and providing the same result as the patented hardware, unless someone has patented an interface (how? that's copyright bro) anything goes. This is a Oracle Vs Google case, patents are not relevant.

Now this does not stop Intel from suing you into oblivion with legal trolling if they feel threatened, but that has nothing to do with the legality of what you are doing.

Intel has attempted to sue various companies that emulate the x86 instruction set like Transmeta.

Wrong, The story was that Transmeta sued Intel over patents as a last bid to save itself, and then they year after that Inter counter-sued saying their patents are bullshit.

I'm not a lawyer but you can follow these discussions

Where other non-laywyers post their own opinions? Yeah totally worthy use of time. That's basically wikipedia.

[phuclv]

Who said that software emulators need to care about hardware patents.

Intel already patented their extended ISAs like SSE or AVX. The ISA, not hardware

[starshipeleven]

Intel already patented their extended ISAs like SSE or AVX. The ISA, not hardware

For hardware implementing that ISA it's valid, for pure software emulation it's a "rectangle with rounded edges" kind of patent as you can't patent a software interface (it's a copyright thing, IF it is a thing at all), so it's good for legal trolling only.

As said, Intel is big enough (and sees this as critical enough) to sue everyone and their dog to oblivion and even seriously harass same-sized corporations like MS, so what I said is effectively pointless nipticking, they can and will do all they can to shut down what they perceive as a threat.

QEMU for example isn't a threat because while it can emulate SSE and whatnot it runs like complete garbage so it's never going to threaten Intel.