Luminary joins open-source protection firm

Bruce Perens, the Linux developer and advocate who helped coin the term "open source," has joined the board of directors of Open Source Risk Management, a company that sells insurance-like protection for Linux use. Perens' cooperation with the New York-based start-up was predicted, but OSRM expects to formally announce his association Monday.

Perens endorsed the company's mission. "Collective legal defense is the next necessary step for open source to be ready for business," Perens said in a statement. "Through a concentration of legal resources and expertise, OSRM will be a formidable power against the legal opponents to Open Source."