The patent, which has been licensed widely by security systems, including those of Netscape and Explorer browsers, would have expired on 20th September, exactly 17 years after it was first issued to MIT and licensed exclusively to RSA.
The expiry had been anticipated as a symbolic date by security executives. Baltimore Technologies Inc. was using the expiration as a marketing tool for new products.
RSA said the early release will reassure investors that its follow-up products will secure the company’s future. However, it is understood that the decision to release it two weeks early was also pre-empting the bad publicity otherwise expected on 20th September.
Baltimore Technologies has said that it plans to give away to software developers tool kits that would have previously infringed the RSA patent. Companies such as Baltimore have already been able to sell competing products in Europe and elsewhere because the RSA patent is not legally recognised outside the US.