In a bold commitment to open source, IBM has handed over 500 of its software patents to the open source community and has challenged other companies to follow suit.

The move will allow developers to use the technologies that it has developed, without having to pay a license fee to the company.

The IT giant intends the move to form the basis of an industry-wide ?patent commons? in which patents are used to establish a platform for collaborative innovation.

The pledge is applicable to any individual, community, or company working on or using software that meets the open source initiative definition of open source software now or in the future.

At the same time, the company announced that for the 12th consecutive year, it has been granted more patents than any other US company, with 3,248 granted last year alone - 1,314 more than its nearest rival.

'True innovation leadership is about more than just the numbers of patents granted. It's about innovating to benefit customers, partners and society,' said John Kelly, IBM senior vice president for technology and intellectual property.

'Continuing IBM's legacy of leadership in the strategic use of intellectual property, our pledge today is the beginning of a new era in how IBM will manage intellectual property to benefit our partners and clients.

'Unlike the preceding industrial economy, the innovation economy requires that intellectual property be deployed for more than just providing the owner with freedom of action and income generation,' said Kelly.