Software and Copyright

2838 Words6 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: For and against software piracy

Software and Copyright

Current copyright and patent laws are inappropriate for computer software; their imposition slows down software development and reduces competition.

From the first computer as we know them, the ENIAC, computer software has become more and more important. From thousands of bytes on miles of paper to millions of bytes on a thin piece of tin foil sandwitched between two pieces of plastic, software has played an important part in the world. Computers have most likely played an important role in all our lives, from making math easier with calculators, to having money on the go with ATM machines. However, with all the help that has been given to us, we haven't done anything for software and the people who write it. Software by nature is completely defenseless, as it is more or less simply intellectual property, and not a physical thing, thus very

easily copied. Copied software does not make money for its creators, and thus they charge more for whats not copied, and the whole industry inflates.

There are two categories of intellectual property. The first one is composed of writing, music, and films,which are covered by copyright. Inventions and innovations are covered by patent. These two categories have covered for years many kinds of work with little or no conflict. Unfortunately, it is not that easy when dealing with such a complex matter as computer software. When something is typed on a computer, it is considered writting, as it is all written words and numbers. However, when executed by the computer, it functions like an invention, performing a specific task as instructed by the user.

Thus, software falls into both categories (Del Guercio 22-24). It is generally covered today by copyright laws, for most mass market software at least. More advanced software or programming techniques, however, can be patented, as they are neither obvious nor old. This results in many problems which I will go into later.

Copyrights last the lifetime of the author, plus 50 years, and can be renewed. Patents last only 17 years, but cannot be renewed. With technology advancing so quickly, it is not necessary to maintain the protection of the software for the length of the copyright, but also, it is sometimes necessary to renew them (Del Guercio 22-24), say, for a 10th sequel in a video game series or version 47.1 of Bob's Graphic Progra...

... middle of paper ...

...
Anne Bilodeau House Bill Would Limit Hyperlinks.

http:/.www.webweek.com/96May20/nes/netcopy.html (1996).

Richard Raysman et al Computer Law: Internet Copyright Developments.

http://www.brmlaw.com/doclib/complaw196.html (1996).

Del Guercio, Gino. "Softwars." World Monitor Oct. 1991: 22-24. Reprinted in Technology 3. Boca Raton, Florida: SIRS, Inc., 1996: Article 75.

Daniel Grant. "Computer Copycats Blur Rights." Christian Science Monitor Oct. 3 1991: 12. Reprinted in Technology 3. Boca Raton, Florida: SIRS, Inc., 1996: Article 75.

Daniel A Tysver BitLaw: Internet Linking http://www.bitlaw.com/internet/linking.html (1996).

Daniel A Tysver BitLaw: Internet Software Patents http://www.bitlaw.com/internet/patent.html (1996).

David Pressman Patent It Yourself http://www.nolo.com/pat/toc.html (1996).

Niva Elkin-Koren Copyright Liability of BBS Operators

http://yu1.yu.edu/csl/journals/aelj/articles/13-2/elkin.html (1995).

Gleick, James. "I'll Take the Money, Thanks." New York Times 4 Aug. 1996. 16.

Dukelow, Ruth. The Library Copyright Guide Chelsea, Michigan., 1992.

Ross, Philip E. "Cops vs Robbers in Cyberspace." Forbes 9 Sept. 1996. 134-140.

Show More
Related

  • Blown To Bits Chapter Summaries

    555 Words  | 2 Pages

    More advanced technology users can make copies and distribute it to the general public for free. The people who are the originators of this information seem to be a step behind the those users who attempt to distribute the information for free. Many internet users are aware that there are ways to get this information for free and will go to lengths to avoid paying for it. Some users risk downloading viruses onto their electronics in order to avoid paying fees charged by the makers of information that they are trying to get a hold of. This problem caused a big push more legislation around copyright

    Read More

  • Steroid Use in Baseball

    1448 Words  | 3 Pages

    Steroid usage is rampant in baseball and players make choices to use the steroids despite the fact that MLB banned the usage of steroids in 2001 (Drug Policy, 2014). MLB did not begin drug testing for steroids until March of 2003 or institute fines and suspensions until 2005 (Drug Policy, 2014).

    Read More

  • Le Guin's The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas

    1025 Words  | 3 Pages

    Le Guin, the author paints a picture of a perfect society. But for this society to remain perfect, the people in Omelas treat one child terribly by locking it away in a closet. This treatment of the child became a social norm because it was good for the majority and only affected a small minority, the child. So, all of the other children in the society are brought to see the treatment of this child when they are “ready”. However, the parents can not know when their offspring are ready to see this kind of suffering. The citizens see the miserable child being violated and mistreated, but they do nothing because they care more about their own happiness than the child’s. The story ends with some people going against what was expected and walking away from the city leaving behind their homes. The story illustrates how hard it is to go against these established social norms. It does this by the people realizing the treatment of the child is wrong and walking away. The people show real courage going against something that they were taught was necessary, the suffering of the child, for the good life. This is a great example of how twisted socialization and social norms can

    Read More

  • Power Of Choice In Mario Pepper's Life

    1177 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas is written as a metaphor, providing a thought provoking view of the real world and the power of our choices. Ursula Le Guin begins the story establishing a connection between the short story and the real world, “These were not simple folk… they were not less complex than us.” Metaphorically, the people of Omelas embody humanity as a whole. In our world, there are individuals that are far worse off than others. For our present society to exist, must this conventional standard be accepted? Ursula Le Guin writes with the purpose to convey man has the power to

    Read More

  • Theme Of Utilitarianism In The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas

    999 Words  | 2 Pages

    . it has become imbecile through fear, malnutrition, and neglect” (5). The child is treated inhumanely and used as a “scapegoat” for these people’s happiness. Usually, the idea of scapegoatism refers to the act of blame being laid on one person instead of another, but Le Guin’s writes this as the people of Omelas using the child as the symbol of misery and evil and building their happiness on his suffering. He mentions, “They all know it is there, all the people of Omelas. . . They all know it had to be there. Some of them understand why, and some do not, but they all understand that their happiness, the beauty of their city . . . the wisdom of their scholars . . . even the abundance of their harvest and the kindly weathers of their skies, depend wholly on this child’s abominable misery” (3). They know that the child is suffering, but proceeds to ignore this as they fear it will take away their happiness. Hence, they try to soothe themselves by impregnating their heads with the thought of utilitarianism, as Le Guin notes, “to throw away the happiness of thousands for the chance of the happiness of one: that would be to let guilt within the walls indeed” (6). These monsters will rather let an innocent child suffer than to let it “destroy” their

    Read More

  • Trends In Copyright Infringement: A Review of Two Predictive Articles

    1963 Words  | 4 Pages

    Over the past decade the societal view of creative society has greatly changed due to advances in computer technology and the Internet.  In 1995, aware of the beginning of this change, two authors wrote articles in Wired Magazine expressing diametrically opposed views on how this technological change would take form, and how it would affect copyright law.  In the article "The Emperor's Clothes Still Fit Just Fine" Lance Rose hypothesized that the criminal nature of copyright infringement would prevent it from developing into a socially acceptable practice. Thus, he wrote, we would not need to revise copyright law to prevent copyright infringement.  In another article, Entitled "Intellectual Value", Esther Dyson presented a completely different view of the copyright issue.  She based many her arguments on the belief that mainstream copyright infringement would proliferate in the following years, causing a radical revision of American ideas and laws towards intellectual property.   What has happened since then?  Who was right?  This paper analyzes the situation then and now, with the knowledge that these trends are still in a state of transformation. As new software and hardware innovations make it easier to create, copy, alter, and disseminate original digital content, this discussion will be come even more critical.

    Read More

  • Intellectual Property in the Age of the Internet

    1687 Words  | 4 Pages

    When Tim Berners-Lee created the Internet as a non-proprietor, not-for-profit information conduit, he could not have predicted how controversial digitized intellectual property would become. Prior to the Internet, intellectual property was a fairly straightforward issue. It was protected with copyright, trademark, and patent legislations, which granted exclusive rights to owners. Violations were not as abundant because distribution was constrained by time and space. Moreover, violators were identifiable because anonymity was difficult to achieve. In today's "global village" however, digital information such as books, music, software and art can be instantly shared between two anonymous users, without any fee to the creator. Legislation is much more difficult to enforce.

    Read More

  • The Ethics of Source Code Theft

    2869 Words  | 6 Pages

    News of source code theft jolted the software industry on February 12, 2004.2 Cyber criminals had stolen source code from Windows 2000 and Windows NT4.0. Windows 2000 and NT are the platforms on which the widely used home operating system of today, Windows XP, is based on. Luckily, only a small portion of code was stolen. Not nearly enough to build the entire Windows operating system. Through the use of peer-to-peer networking, the code was distributed in an underground hacker network. Eventually the source was spread onto public-access web sites, by which Microsoft confirmed the code was, indeed, real Windows code.

    Read More

  • Software Piracy

    2127 Words  | 5 Pages

    A Worldwide Problem Software piracy is defined as the illegal copying of software for commercial or personal gain. Software companies have tried many methods to prevent piracy, with varying degrees of success. Several agencies like the Software Publishers Association and the Business Software Alliance have been formed to combat both worldwide and domestic piracy. Software piracy is an unresolved, worldwide problem, costing millions of dollars in lost revenue. Software companies have used many different copy protection schemes. The most annoying form of copy protection is the use of a key disk. This type of copy protection requires the user to insert the original disk every time the program is run. It can be quite difficult to keep up with disks that are years old. The most common technique of copy protection requires the user to look up a word or phrase in the program's manual. This method is less annoying than other forms of copy protection, but it can be a nuisance having to locate the manual every time. Software pirates usually have no trouble "cracking" the program, which permanently removes the copy protection. After the invention of CD-ROM, which until lately was uncopyable, most software companies stopped placing copy protection in their programs. Instead, the companies are trying new methods of disc impression. 3M recently developed a new technology of disc impression which allows companies to imprint an image on the read side of a CD-ROM. This technology would not prevent pirates from copying the CD, but it would make a "bootleg" copy differ from the original and make the copy traceable by law enforcement officials (Estes 89). Sometimes, when a person uses a pirated program, there is a "virus" attached to the program. Viruses are self-replicating programs that, when activated, can damage a computer. These viruses are most commonly found on pirated computer games, placed there by some malignant computer programmer. In his January 1993 article, Chris O' Malley points out that if piracy was wiped out viruses would eventually disappear (O' Malley 60). There are ways that a thrifty consumer can save money on software without resorting to piracy. Computer companies often offer discounts on new software if a person has previously purchased an earlier version of the software. Competition between companies also drives prices low and keeps the number of pirated copies down (Morgan 45). People eventually tire or outgrow their software and decide to sell it.

    Read More

  • Omelas Moral Dilemma

    927 Words  | 2 Pages

    It leaves an impression of how beautiful and enjoyable it would be to live there. Everyone in Omelas seems to be living pure happiness all around. As the story is being told, there’s a sudden change from describing an enjoyable summer to a description of a dark place at the bottom of a public building in Omelas. Le Guin describes, “The room is about three paces long and two wide: a mere broom closet or disused tool room. In the room, a child sitting. It could be a boy or a girl” (Le Guin). The child who is also considered as in “it”, is being held as a prisoner and left there to suffer. Meanwhile, everyone else few feet above are enjoying the presence of others and the Festival of Summer. The citizens seemed to be aware of the situation of the existence of the child, but people prefer to stay quiet. Perhaps they started to believe that the suffering of one child is the definition of a perfect society and later came to realize that it’s for the best if nobody talked about it or mention anything. As the story goes more in depth on how the child is living in a basement and the reaction of many people, we can conclude that is an act of utilitarianism which is a form of consequentialism ethics as well. As stated in the book Theory and Practice, “In other words, if a given choice leads to bad results, then the choice is morally wrong. If it leads to good

    Read More

  • Computer Security in an Information Age

    2236 Words  | 5 Pages

    Computers; they are a part of or in millions of homes; they are an intricate part of just about every if not all successful businesses, the government, and the military. Computers have become common place in today’s society and the lives of the people who live in it. They have crossed every national, racial, cultural, educational, and financial barrier, which consequently ushered in the information age. A computer is a programmable electronic device that can store, retrieve and process data, and they come in all shapes, and sizes. They can be used for and in just about anything. As stated before, they are used in just about every aspect of modern society. They are so fundamental to modern society that it would be disastrous to society without them. As stated before, there are many areas in modern society that are run by computers. They play an intricate part of millions of homes in the world. Office workers in business, government and the military may use them to write letters, keep rosters, create budgets, find information, manage projects, communicate with workers, and so on. They are used in education, medicine, music, law enforcement, and unfortunately crime. Because computers have become such a part of the world and how it operates, there is a tremendous responsibility for those who are in control of these computers and the vital information that they carry, to manage and protect them properly. This is management and protection is vital because any loss or damage could be disastrous for the affected entity. For example, a mistake or intentional alteration of a personal credit file could affect ones ability to buy a car or home, or can lead to legal actions against the affected person until the mistake or intentional alteration has been corrected. Therefore, with the advent of computers in the information age, and all of the intentional and unintentional violations against them, comes the need to safeguard them and the information they carry with strong systems and policies of computer security.

    Read More

  • Intellectual Property Protection and Enforcement

    1359 Words  | 3 Pages

    Intellectual property (IP) is defined as property that is developed through an intellectual and creative processes. Intellectual property falls under the category of property known as intangible rights, which includes patents (inventions of processes, machines, manufactures, and compositions of matter), copyrights (original artistic and literary works of), trademarks (commercial symbols), and trade secrets ((product formulas, patterns, designs). Intellectual property rights has a significant value to both individuals and businesses, providing in the case of large companies, over one half of their value on return. Since intellectual property rights are so important to the U.S. economy and its citizens, federal and state law provides protection, for example, civil damages and criminal penalties to be assessed against infringers. Due to the importance of intellectual property to a business, I don’t think that its protection and enforcement is going to be a thing of the past.

    Read More

  • Software Piracy Essay

    1392 Words  | 3 Pages

    paid for. The pirate has a set of excuses for his actions: prices are too high;

    Read More

  • Software Piracy

    2461 Words  | 5 Pages

    The PC industry is just over 20 years old. In those 20 years, both the quality

    Read More

  • Essay On Intellectual Property

    941 Words  | 2 Pages

    Patents claims focus of the mechanism, principles and components surrounding those ideas. Patents are the strongest of the law to protect the intellectual property. Patent law is based on a very strict liability standard, making a business owner’s strongest option for intellectual property protection. Patents often make use of reverse engineering. Through reverse engineering, they see if patented inventions are in used by another company. Patents have an expiration date; the design patent protect design, shape, configuration and appearance of any invention for 14 years, and utility patents that protect functional makeover and new invention last for 20

    Read More

More about Software and Copyright

Open Document