Burn All GIFs-day was 27 years ago

Burn All GIFs-day was 27 years ago Today is the 27th anniversary of Burn All GIFs-day. Burn All GIFs-day On November 5 1999, Burn All GIFs day, people were asked to delete their GIF files. The LZW algorithm that made GIFs possible was actually under patent. The patent was owned by a company called Unisys Corp. The problem that caused the Burn All GIFs-day was a sudden requirement to pay a royalty for using an patented algorithm that made GIF possible. On A Brief History of the GIF, From Early Internet Innovation to Ubiquitous Relic is a clear explanation of this. Here's a shortened extract from it: In 1995, after years of developers having a free-for-all with their GIFs, suddenly Unisys announced they would be charging a royalty (.45 percent and .65 percent on different products) for software that used the algorithm, including TIFF and PDF as well as GIF. Their patent wouldn’t run out until 2003 in the U.S. and 2004 everywhere else. Some results of the Burn All GIFs campaign: A new…

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