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I have been considering to implement Bε tree indexes in open source project. As far as I understand PerconaFT key value store uses them as a base for their Fractal Indexes, and they claim that they use several US patents - No. 8,185,551 and No. 8,489,638. I am not a lawyer, so I have a question does it mean that nobody else can practically implement Bε Tree based indexes in their software product?

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Andrey Lomakin
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  • I am not a lawyer. I'd say a patent only means that the patent holder decides who can use the patented 'thing'. Often enough they provide licenses for others so they can use the patented 'thing'. Why don't you ask them? Maybe you are very lucky and you get a free license for your open-source product? – TilmannZ Apr 17 '17 at 14:58

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This question seems more suited for a legal advice forum, or perhaps even for hired legal counsel. IP law is a rather convoluted and tricky subject, and you may want to get official legal advice before proceeding.

I do not know if you will find anyone on here who is willing to tell you that you definitively can or cannot use patented software in an open-source project.

lax1089
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