Joel from VIA Hardware has wrote up an interesting little article explaining what he would say to both Intel and AMD if he had the chance, making suggestions for the future. I particularly like this one:

5. Stop Being So Damn License Happy

 

First we had the VIA deal. That was ugly enough. Does VIA or doesn't VIA have a license to produce P4 chipsets? Blah blah blah. Now we find out you've got to have a 533 MHz bus license to produce mobos for that. I could be going out on a limb here, but I bet VIA won't get one. I bet you'll sue them. And I bet the only people that will get rich are the lawyers. I've got a novel idea for you that's worked through most of history. Make a good product. License it really cheaply. Let everyone use it. Don't make a fuss. Plus, you have more fun. Might keep your patent lawyer from having to drink Maalox straight from the bottle.