Xen Trademark Policy

Various sites have reported this morning on the update to the Xen trademark policy, which controls how organizations and companies may or may not use the Xen trademark.

I haven’t yet read the actual Xen Trademark Policy, but I have read what was posted of Citrix’s response to the updated policy. I’m sure it’s just me, but this response sure sounds like “We can use Xen in our product names, but no one else can.” Now tell me, how does this benefit the entire Xen community?

Don’t get me wrong; Xen AB—which I assume to be the legal entity responsible for protecting the Xen trademarks now that XenSource is owned by Citrix—has every right to protect the Xen trademark and Xen logo. There is absolutely no question about that. But shouldn’t trademark restrictions on an open source project apply equally to all organizations, commercial or non-commercial, that utilize that open source project? Why should any one organization, regardless of which organization it is, get preferential treatment?

By the way, all this is a moot point if I am wrong about the ownership of the Xen trademark. If Citrix owns the Xen trademark, which they very well might as a result of the purchase of XenSource, then I suppose they are free to impose whatever restrictions they see fit.