'???'
When this statement appeared, Ethan was completely baffled!
The first-generation godly core 6502 was developed based on the Motorola 6800?
Damn!
Isn't this blatant plagiarism?
Under his questioning, Chuck Peddle also revealed the situation MOS 6502 faced.
It turns out that after leaving Motorola, these engineers immediately started researching low-cost chips. But how could the development of chips be so simple?
Every morning when they arrived at work, they spread out blueprints on their desks. Then it was a cup of coffee, a pack of cigarettes, and a day staring at a blank sheet of paper.
They were unable to start for a long time.
Not because they couldn't draw.
But because they didn't know how to draw.
Because they had previously developed the Motorola 6800!
When your invention has been market-tested and confirmed without problems, asking them to change their approach and do it again is like asking for their lives.
In this situation, they racked their brains for a long time and finally made some innovations, designing a CPU called MOS 6501.
And what was the innovation of this CPU?
It addressed some of the BUGs in the Motorola 6800...
If you dismantle a computer with the Motorola 6800, remove the 6800, and solder on the MOS 6501, you'll find that the machine still runs normally. Not only that, the performance of the 6501 is even better than the 6800!
When this fact emerged, Chuck Peddle and the others were stunned!
Because they knew this was plagiarism.
Just that it was me copying myself.
Not knowing how to handle this situation, they sent a letter to Motorola, informing them of the situation with MOS 6501.
Then—
Motorola sued MOS.
Motorola claimed that MOS infringed on their patent rights, demanding MOS to stop infringement and compensate for losses.
As MOS was just a small company founded in 1969, to ensure their company could continue to operate, they had no choice but to kneel and quickly reached an out-of-court settlement with Motorola with a loud slap, compensating Motorola with two hundred thousand dollars.
Because MOS voluntarily reported this matter, and most of MOS engineers had come from Motorola, after the apology and compensation, Motorola couldn't be bothered anymore.
But Chuck Peddle and others who were unwilling to give up their dreams then developed another chip, MOS 6502.
"So... is this MOS 6502 really infringing?"
Ethan found Chuck Peddle's description a bit headache-inducing.
He never expected that the products of the MOS company were so cheap because the research and development costs were very low?
What the hell is this?
Upon hearing Ethan question, Chuck Peddle on the other end of the phone helplessly said, "Ethan, I can only tell you that MOS 6502 and Motorola 6800 are not compatible, and MOS 6502 uses updated manufacturing processes."
'Got it!'
Ethan understood.
The architecture of MOS 6502 is probably not much different from Motorola 6800.
And this may be a problem that Chuck Peddle can never solve.
After all, people's thinking has patterns.
When a person firmly believes that their direction is not wrong, only hitting a southern wall will make them turn around.
And thinking about the unclear relationship between 6502 and Motorola, Ethan felt a bit uncomfortable.
When there are legal issues with the golden mountain in front of him...
What exactly is the flashy appearance he sees?
Is it easily obtainable real gold, or the foul-smelling dog poop?
Ethan is not sure.
But he knows that before buying the license, he has to clarify the key points here.
"So, Mr. Peddle, have you consulted a lawyer?"
This question made Chuck Peddle sigh and say, "Ethan, our company has legal counsel, and they told me that if Motorola really wants to sue us again, we might still be judged as infringing."
"Is there a way to resolve it?"
"We're working on it."
"I want to know since you don't have a patent, how dare you sell products? And as far as I know, you will participate in the September San Francisco Electronics Expo?"
"Well... since you trust us so much, we'll just tell you directly. It was just a temporary plan. If there's a real issue, we can skip it. As for selling... let me put it this way, if someone buys, we produce; if no one buys, we don't. This way, when Motorola really sues us, we can minimize the losses. Also, if we can sell a large quantity of chips at once, it's also doing something for the market."
After a few more exchanges, Ethan hung up the phone.
Leaning back at the table, he thought for a while, feeling more and more uneasy.
MOS 6502 is actually an infringing product?
How did it become a bestseller in its previous life?
Did it reach a settlement with Motorola?
Or did it find a solution?
Ethan couldn't find any related memories.
At the same time, he also suspected whether Chuck Peddle was deceiving him.
Just because they don't want to authorize, they claim to have a legal issue?
And when he shared this thought with the chubby guy who came back in the evening, the first reaction of the chubby guy was astonishment, and the second reaction was to help Ethan inquire.
After making a few calls and shouting "uncles" several times, Ethan got the truth from him.
"What Chuck said is correct."
"Motorola did sue them before and demanded one million in compensation. In the end, they did reach a settlement and paid two hundred thousand."
"It seems I was wrong; this matter is indeed more complicated."
Woz's words gave Ethan a bit of a headache.
More than him, actually, was Steve Jobs.
After Woz had dinner and went into the garage, he also approached Ethan nervously, asking, "Will this legal issue affect the sales of computers?"
Ethan shrugged and said, "Normal use will definitely not be affected, but other aspects are hard to say."
"Let me make an analogy. If you buy a batch of 6502 now and sell them in computers, Motorola can't stop this. Even if in the process, Motorola sues MOS, wins the lawsuit, and stops the production of 6502, these chips already in the market cannot be recovered."
"But..."
"When 6502 runs out?"
"What chips will you use?"
"There's no such cheap alternative on the market."
"Oh! Sxxt!" Steve Jobs cursed at this fact.
With an angry kick, he kicked the chair.
Immediately, there was a clattering sound.
The orange wooden chair collided with the old floor, emitting painful groans.
Then...
Steve Jobs left home, riding his motorcycle without knowing where to go.
Listening to the sudden roar, Ethan sighed.
Although memories of his past life told him that MOS 6502 could survive until 2023, the patent issue can certainly be resolved. But how to solve it? In what way to solve it? That, he really had no idea.
He could indeed buy the authorization of 6502 based on his past life's memories. But who could guarantee that the butterfly effect he caused could make MOS 6502 legendary again?
If, with his intervention, MOS 6502 couldn't resolve the patent disputes?
Wouldn't he be equivalent to pulling down his pants and letting others shit in his crotch?
No matter how you look at it, it seems a bit brainless.
'Damn!'
'Why is my time travel different from others?'
'Is it so hard for me to pick up some money?'
TL Note:
The previous generation product, 6501, 6502 is indeed a copy, as confirmed by Motorola. In this case, Motorola also made a tricky move. If 6501 didn't infringe and even fixed the BUGs in 6800, after winning the lawsuit, Motorola directly fixed 6800 based on 6501.
Actually, if MOS didn't tell Motorola about making 6501, and didn't showcase 6501, they wouldn't have to pay any compensation. But these engineers still did it. I don't know why.
There is indeed a copyright issue with 6502. Synertek, which has the production rights, confirmed this issue. When they signed a contract with MOS, there was a clause stating that if Motorola raised a copyright lawsuit, they would stop producing 6502.