Ethereum Name Service Founder Challenges Unstoppable Domains Over a Newly Acquired Patent
Summary:
Nick Johnson, the founder of Ethereum Name Service (ENS), has called on Unstoppable Domains to cancel a recently acquired patent or face potential legal action. He alleges that the patent, which concerns the use of blockchain technology for determining domains, is entirely based on ENS's original concepts and offers no unique innovation. Johnson adds that all ENS's work falls under open-source licenses and standards are openly accessible. Unstoppable Domains has promised their first patent to the Web3 Domain Alliance, an industry group it founded. However, Johnson highlights that this promise holds no legal stature and has urged the company to give legal substance to its pronouncement. He warned ENS Labs is prepared to contest the patent.
Nick Johnson, the founder and key programmer of Ethereum Name Service (ENS), has issued a public plea to blockchain domains company Unstoppable Domains. He wants them to revoke a patent they recently won or face potential legal proceedings, as stated in an open communique disseminated via X (originally Twitter).
Unstoppable Domains notched their initial patent in January, namely, patent number US11558344. It accredits Braden River Pezeshki, Matthew Everett Gould, and Bogdan Gusiev as the creators of a certain technology that utilizes blockchain to assign domains. This patent application was submitted to the United States Patent and Trademark Office the previous year.
Johnson, however, asserts that this patent is entirely built on ENS's original ideas and doesn’t exhibit any innovation of its own. The ENS guidelines state, "The Ethereum Name Service (ENS) is a dispersed, open, and expandable naming system established on the Ethereum blockchain. The main role of ENS is to link easy-to-remember names, for example, 'alice. eth', to machine-friendly identifiers like Ethereum addresses, other digital currency addresses, content hashes, and other descriptive data."
On November 17, Johnson expressed in a public communique that all ENS's work falls under open-source licensing, with every standard openly accessible for use. Attempts to connect with Unstoppable Domains regarding this concern have proven unsuccessful lately, according to Johnson.
Unstoppable Domains has subsequently released a public announcement that they promise their first patent to the Web3 Domain Alliance, an industry group started and managed by Unstoppable Domains. Johnson points out though that this public announcement does not hold any legal power, "We are asking Unstoppable Domains to give legal strength to its promise by guaranteeing an unconditional and irrevocable patent pledge."
ENS Labs, Johnson warns, stands ready to challenge this patent, which they assert is completely based on their own inventions, a stance they are capable and willing to prove. Matthew Gould, one of the suspected inventors from Unstoppable Domains, replied in the communique, openly inviting Johnson to join the Web3 Domain Alliance, the blockchain domain registry group that is theoretically committed to the patent. Gould defended, saying, "Your offered solution fails to understand that we want various naming systems to coexist, not just ENS, and the only method to secure that future is to have a platform where all stakeholders, not just Unstoppable Domains and ENS, collaborate."
No immediate response was received upon reaching out to Unstoppable Domains. Meanwhile, this communique has drawn the attention of the cryptocurrency community. Bob Summerwill, the recognised leader of Ethereum Classic Cooperative, pointed out that pressuring other organizations to join the Web3 Domain Alliance to gain rights over the technology directly contrasts with the principle of open-source.
Published At
11/17/2023 4:06:39 PM
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