Site hosted by Angelfire.com: Build your free website today!

4600 Course Project

by Reema Ahluwalia


Intellectual Property Issues


What is Intellectual Property? The key to understanding intellecutal property is to understand that the thing protected is the intangible creative work--which is embodied in a physical form. When one buys a book, one is buying the physical collection of paper and ink that contains a copy of the book. One doesn't buy the plot or the organization of ideas so he/she doesn't have the right to make copies of it. The right to make copies belongs to the owner of the intangible book, that is, the owner of the copyright. The principle is similar for software. The buyer only buys one copy of the software but has no right on the program. The program itself is still owned by the copyright owner.

The following links provide more information on this subject:
Intellectual Property Online
Intellecutal Propery and the National Information Infrastructure
Intellectual Property Law
Directory of Intellectual Property Law Firms


Copyrights and Patents


What kind of intellectual property is protected by copyright? Facts, ideas, concepts, processes and methods of operation are not copyrightable. Coprights protects creative expressions, that is, the expression, selection and arrangement of ideas.
Patents are granted for inventions of new things or processes. They protect new ideas by giving the inventor a monoploy on the invention for a specified period of time (currently 20 years). The purpose of patents are similar to those of copyrights: to reward the inventor and encourage disclosure and use of the invention so others benefit from it too.
Patents differ from copyrights in that they protect the underlying idea of an invention, not just a particular espression or implementation of it. They prohibit anyone from using the idea without authorization of the patent holder, even if the other person came up with the same idea or invention.

U.S. copyright law gives the copyright holder the following exclusive rights, with some exceptions:
To make copies of the work
To produce derivative works, such as translations into other languages or movies based on books
To distribute copies
To perform the work in public(e.g., music, plays)and
To display the work in public(e.g., artwork, movies)

Internet Patent News


Copyright Law

What copying is permissible? Under copyright law, the buyer has the right to make a copy necessary to install the software on a computer and to make one "archival" copy. Licensing agreements for busines software may grant other copying rights. The licensing that come packaged with some with some personal computer software indicate that making a copy for a second computer, such as a portable or laptop, is acceptable if only one copy is in use at a time. Certain other uses are permissible under the fair use doctrine.

What is Copyright Protection
Copyright Laws and Treaties of the World

The fair use doctrine As the constitution indicates, the purpose of copyright is to encourage production of useful work. Copyright law an court decisions have attempted to define the rights of authors and publishers consistent with this goal and the goal of encouraging the use and flow of information. The fair use of doctrine allwos uses of copyrighted material that contribute to the creation of new work and used that are not likely to deprive authors or publishers of income for their work. Fair uses do not require the permission of the copyright holder.
The 1976 copyright law was written before the widespread use of personal computers and before computer networks and online services. The software issues addressed pertained mainly to large business systems. The law lists four factors to be considered in determining if a particular use is fair. They must be interpreted for software in court cases and may need to be rewritten to clarify fair use for modern digital technology. The factors in the law are as follows:
1) The purpose and nature of the use, including whether it is for commercial purposes or nonprofit educational purposes.
2) The nature of the copyrighted work.
3) The amount and significance of the portion used.
4) The effect of the use on the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work.

Fair use Cases
Sony vs. Universal City Studios
An internet case: The Church of Scientology
Ricky Realtor vs. Software, Inc.-A Hypothetical Case


Software Copyright: Piracy, Protection, Rejection

What is software piracy? What does it cost?
There are three main categories of software piracy
* Some businesses produce and sell unauthorized copies of popular software packages
* Many businesses, organizations and schools buy one or a few copies of a software package and install it on dozens or hundreds of computers.
* People intentionally put copyrighted software on computers accessible by modem fot others to download.

Software Industry Issues

Software theft has two social costs. One, it results in higher prices for legally sold copies of software because the number of copies from which the software seller gets any return is reduced. Shoplifting and other forms of thefts have sthe same result. If theyare widespread, honest customers suffer from higher prices because of the increased cost of security and the similar number of people paying the goods or services. Two, widespread software theft ultimately leads to less development of good software because it reduces the return to software developers on their investment of time, creativity and labor.

Federation Against Software Theft(FAST)


Protecting Software Copyrights


Software publisher and vendors have tried a number of approaches to reduce software copyright infringment. They include the following:
* Technical device to prevent or deter copying
*Enforcement and revisions of copyright law
*Education about the reasons for copyright protection and the social costs of piracy
*Marketing and contractual changes from software publishers that reduce the incentive to copy illegally

Copyrighting Web Sites and Software


Copyright in Cyberspace


Problems from New Technologies
The increasin use of electronic media and computer networks has created new problems for protection of literary, artistic and musical works-as well as computer software. Some of the technological sources of the problem are the following:
* Digital storage media such as hard disks and CD-ROMS
* Storage of all sorts of infomation in standard digitized forms
* Character scanners and photo scanners
* The ease of copying digitized material onto disks
* The ease of distributing digitized material over computer networks

Illegal Software Distribution in Cyberspace

Pending State Laws Affecting Electronic Commerce

Literary and Artistic Material in Cyberspace


Some other informatory links regarding this subject:
Internet Society: Legal Guide
New Laws Update
Press Release: Copright Laws
Managing the Digital Enterprise
Untangling the Web with Existing Law
Cyberspace Law Center
Cybercrime
Find Law: Legal Subjects




PS: Some information has been taken from the book "A Gift of Fire" by 'Sara Baase'.