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Addressing The Incoherency Of The Preemption Provision Of The Copyright Act Of 1976, Joseph P. Bauer
Addressing The Incoherency Of The Preemption Provision Of The Copyright Act Of 1976, Joseph P. Bauer
Journal Articles
Section 301 of the Copyright Act of 1976 expressly preempts state law actions that are within the "general scope of copyright" and that assert claims that are "equivalent to" the rights conferred by the Act. The Act eliminated the previous system of common law copyright for unpublished works, which had prevailed under the prior 1909 Copyright Act. By federalizing copyright law, the drafters of the statute sought to achieve uniformity and to avoid the potential for state protection of infinite duration.
The legislative history of § 301 stated that this preemption provision was set forth "in the clearest and most …
The Copyrightability Of Nonliteral Elements Of Computer Programs, Julian Velasco
The Copyrightability Of Nonliteral Elements Of Computer Programs, Julian Velasco
Journal Articles
The goal of copyright law is "[t]o promote the Progress of Science and Useful Arts." It is premised on the assumption that "encourag[ing] . . . individual effort by personal gain is the best way to advance public welfare through the talents of authors . . ." In order to "promote progress," however, copyright law must respond to changes in technology.
One issue that has been problematic for the courts is whether and to what extent the nonliteral elements of computer programs are copyrightable. Nonliteral elements are aspects of the computer program other than the written code itself. Although it …