Computer Law Commons^™

From Software To Models: Rethinking Open Source In The Age Of Generative Ai, Dana Beldiman

Washington Journal of Law, Technology & Arts

Open-source software (OSS), a form of distributed and collaborative software development rooted in the ethos of early computer science, has evolved into an essential component of modern digital infrastructure. This article asks whether open source will assume a similarly transformative role within the emerging technological paradigm of generative artificial intelligence (AI).

Generative AI differs fundamentally from software: its constituent artifacts, architectures, generative capacities, and deployment contexts are distinct and substantially more complex. Despite these differences, foundation models continue to be released under licenses originally designed for software, which may not constitute a valid transfer of rights in the generative AI …

Fluid Agency In Ai Systems: A Case For Functional Equivalence In Copyright, Patent, And Tort, Anirban Mukherjee, Hannah H. Chang

Washington Journal of Law, Technology & Arts

Modern artificial intelligence (AI) systems lack human-like consciousness or culpability, yet they exhibit fluid agency: behavior that is (i) stochastic (probabilistic and path-dependent), (ii) dynamic (co-evolving with user interaction), and (iii) adaptive (able to reorient across contexts). Fluid agency generates valuable outputs but collapses attribution, irreducibly entangling human and machine inputs. This fundamental unmappability fractures doctrines that assume traceable provenance—authorship, inventorship, and liability—yielding ownership gaps and moral “crumple zones.”

This Article argues that only functional equivalence stabilizes doctrine. Where provenance is indeterminate, legal frameworks must treat human and AI contributions as equivalent for allocating rights and responsibility—not as a claim …

Caught In The Web: The Resolution Of The Internet Service Provider Contributory Copyright Infringement Split, Olivia F. Johnson

Cybaris®

No abstract provided.

Intellectual Property Or Modern Folklore? The Problem With Open Gaming Licenses In Tabletop Gaming, Rosie Midget

Seattle University Law Review

This Note addresses how courts and legislatures should address “Open Gaming Licenses” commonly attached to tabletop roleplaying games (TTRPGs), which game publishers use to promote a false image of accessibility—misleading consumers and building goodwill from the misunderstanding. Part I discusses what TTRPGs are, including the defining features of the hobby and culture surrounding it, as well as the unique interplay between publishers and players. Part II explores the question of which elements in a TTRPG system may be subject to copyright protection. Part III examines these elements in practice using Wizards of the Coast’s Dungeons and Dragons TTRPG as a …

Copyright Doctrine Before The Tribunal Of Science: A Response To Professor Silbey, Mateusz Blaszczyk

Scholarly Works

In an important new Article, titled A Matter of Facts: The Evolution of the Copyright Fact-Exclusion and Its Implications for Disinformation and Democracy, Professor Jessica Silbey argues provocatively that we “‘only” know that facts are excluded from copyright protection because Feist Publications v. Rural Telephone Service “says so.” She argues that both the nature and importance of facts has been underdefined and is in flux, nonetheless tracing it to the foundational cases of United States (U.S.) copyright law, and argues for a stronger exclusion of facts, which are publici juris, and belong in the public domain. This central …

The Globalization Of Copyright Exceptions For Ai Training, Matthew Sag, Peter K. Yu

Faculty Scholarship

Generative AI, machine learning and other computational uses of copyrighted works pose profound questions for copyright law. This article conducts of global survey of how different countries have attempted to answer these questions in relation to the unauthorized use of copyrighted works for training. Although the world has yet to achieve international consensus on this issue, an international equilibrium is emerging. Jurisdictions with common law and civil law traditions, and with varying economic conditions, technological capabilities, political systems, and cultural backgrounds, have found ways to reconcile copyright law and AI training. In this equilibrium, countries recognize that text data mining, …

Fair Use, Licensing, And Authors' Rights In The Age Of Generative Ai, Celeste Shen

Northwestern Journal of Technology and Intellectual Property

The rise of generative AI technologies has introduced unprecedented challenges to copyright law, particularly around the fair use of copyrighted works in AI training processes. Generative AI tools, such as ChatGPT, are trained on vast datasets that often include copyrighted material, typically without the consent of authors or compensation for use. This widespread, unauthorized use has led to legal disputes, with plaintiffs asserting that using protected texts in training AI models constitutes copyright infringement. This Note examines the application of the fair use doctrine to generative AI, analyzing each of the four statutory factors to demonstrate that generative AI’s commercial …

Robots As Pirates, Henry H. Perritt Jr.

Catholic University Law Review

Generative AI has created much excitement over its potential to create new works of authorship in the literary and graphical realms. Its underling machine-learning technology works by analyzing the relations among elements of preexisting material in enormous databases assembled from publicly available and licensed sources. Its algorithms “learn” to predict “what comes next” in different types of expression. A complete system thus can become glib in creating new factual summaries, essays, fictional stories and images.

A number of authors of the raw material used by Generative AI engines claim that the machine learning process infringes their copyrights. Careful evaluation of …

Navigating Copyright Law In A Digital World With An Analog Rulebook: Guidance For Visual Artists, Stephanie Moser

University of San Francisco Law Review

No abstract provided.

Artificial Intelligence And Transformative Use After Warhol, Gary Myers

Washington and Lee Law Review Online

The Supreme Court’s recent decision in Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc. v. Goldsmith clarifies the scope of transformative use and the role of these uses in the fair use analysis. This important case has implications for a fair use analysis of artificial intelligence. This article evaluates the interaction between copyright law’s fair use doctrine and typical sources and uses for artificial intelligence. In other words, the article will assess whether or not the use of copyrighted material to “train” AI programs—AI inputs—and the products of AI programs—AI outputs—are likely to found to be transformative in light of …

The Perks Of Being Human, Max Stul Oppenheimer

Washington and Lee Law Review Online

The power of artificial intelligence has recently entered the public consciousness, prompting debates over numerous legal issues raised by use of the tool. Among the questions that need to be resolved is whether to grant intellectual property rights to copyrightable works or patentable inventions created by a machine, where there is no human intervention sufficient to grant those rights to the human. Both the U. S. Copyright Office and the U. S. Patent and Trademark Office have taken the position that in cases where there is no human author or inventor, there is no right to copyright or patent protection. …

“This Artwork Is Always On Sale”: The Need For A U.S. Resale Royalty Right For Digital Visual Artists In This Technological Age, And Proof Of Concept Through The Blockchain And Nfts Explosion, Janae Camacho

Washington Journal of Law, Technology & Arts

With the explosion of the internet, social media, non-fungible tokens (“NFTs”), and blockchain technology, there has been a shift in how people consume and commercialize art, thus resulting in the increased use of digital visual mediums to create, purchase, and receive payment for visual artwork. This increase has renewed the question of whether the United States should implement a resale royalty right for visual work artists. This question is of concern, especially in this digital age where it has become more difficult for digital visual artists to receive equitable compensation for their work, like that of their musical and written …

Perlindungan Hukum Terhadap Virtual Model (Cad Files) Untuk 3d Printing Ditinjau Dari Perspektif Hak Cipta Dan Tentang Desain Industri, Gusti Karina Saraswati

"Dharmasisya” Jurnal Program Magister Hukum FHUI

The existence of 3D Printing and CAD Files has great potential to conflict with the protection of intellectual property rights, especially copyright and industrial design. It is undeniable that in the future this technology will flourish in Indonesia. 3D Printing can change the market ecosystem where people are not selling products but selling virtual models (CAD Files). This ecosystem will have an impact on designers and companies, so they will try to protect their CAD Files from modification and copying by other parties. The legal problem of this research is to answer the question of the form of protection for …

Copyrighting Brain Computer Interface: Where Neuroengineering Meets Intellectual Property Law, Favio Ramirez Caminatti

Cybaris®

No abstract provided.

Pengelolaan Royalti Dari Pencipta Lagu Yang Tidak Terdaftar Di Lembaga Manajemen Kolektif Oleh Lembaga Manajemen Kolektif Nasional, Mohamad Thaufiq Rachman

"Dharmasisya” Jurnal Program Magister Hukum FHUI

Royalty is a reward received by the author or owner of the related right concerning the utilization of their Economic Rights following Article 1 point 21 of Law No. 28, 2014 regarding Copyright ("UUHC 2014"). Royalty could also be interpreted as a form of appreciation for the Author's Works, such as song and/or music. Encouraging the spirit of industry players, including songwriters, is essential for continuous growth. As mentioned in the general explanation section of UUHC 2014, Copyright is the most important basis of the national creative economy. With the fulfillment of the protection and development of this creative economy, …

Perlindungan Hak Cipta Terhadap Penggandaan Permainan Video (Copyright Protection Against Video Game Copying), Ahmad Fajri Wibowo

"Dharmasisya” Jurnal Program Magister Hukum FHUI

Copyright protection provides legal protection to creative industries. One of the creative industries that need to be protected is the video game industry. The development of video games in Indonesia is very fast, therefore legal protection is needed to maintain the development of the video game industry. Basically a video game is an object of creation contained in Law Number 28 of 2014 concerning copyright. In the development of the video game industry, there are problems that occur such as the number of illegal copies of video games. Thus, copyright protection plays a very important role in maintaining the video …

Perlindungan Hukum Atas Ulos Sebagai Ekspresi Budaya Tradisional, Yoshua Ruselvelt P Sidabutar

"Dharmasisya” Jurnal Program Magister Hukum FHUI

Traditional cultural expressions are a way of life for the Indonesian nation that teaches traditions, wisdom, values, communal knowledge packaged and passed on to posterity through tales, legends, arts and ceremonies which gradually form the social norms and way of life of the Indonesian nation. Indonesia is a country that consists of various tribes and cultures so that it has priceless Traditional Cultural Expressions and really needs to be protected. One form of traditional cultural expression in Indonesia is ulos cloth, which is a fabric product that is known internationally. This research uses juridical-normative legal research, where in collecting writing …

Perlindungan Hak Cipta Atas Konten Webinar Serta Akibat Hukum Merekam Dan Menggungah Konten Webinar Tanpa Persetujuan, Nabila Nabila

"Dharmasisya” Jurnal Program Magister Hukum FHUI

The Covid-19 pandemic period has changed the pattern of daily activities from normal to new normal. For example, seminars, which are usually, conducted face-to-face, change to online or what are known as webinars. The legal aspect that is closely related to webinars is the legal aspect of copyright. Organizing online seminars is considered easier because neither the participants nor the speakers need to leave the house to continue carrying out the seminar. Supported by technological developments, this webinar can also be recorded so that participants who are late for the webinar can still know the material presented through the recorded …

Perlindungan Hukum Terhadap Bentuk Fiksasi Dalam Karya Musik Berdasarkan Perkembangan Undang-Undang Hak Cipta, Boy Brian E.S

"Dharmasisya” Jurnal Program Magister Hukum FHUI

This journal aims to discuss the protection of copyright law against tapes converted into the form of a sound recording or a tool shaped CD (Compact Disc), in addition it is to discuss how enforcement against violations fixation in a piece of music that is poured into a recording tool so that it can be enjoyed through the CD. This journal will discuss about the forms of piracy which often occur in the field of copyright songs and music. In this journal will be discussed also about violations in the field of copyright songs or music that will be penalized …

Creativity Without Ip? Vindication And Challenges In The Video Game Industry, Bj Ard

Washington and Lee Law Review

This Article intervenes in the longstanding debate over whether creative production is possible without exhaustive copyright protection. Intellectual property (IP) scholars have identified “negative spaces” like comedy and tattoo art where creativity thrives without IP, but critics dismiss these examples as niche. The video game industry allows for fresh headway. It is now the largest sector in entertainment—with revenues greater than Hollywood, streaming, and music combined—yet IP does not protect key game elements from duplication. Participants navigate this absence using non-IP strategies like those identified in negative-space industries: AAA developers invest in copy-resistant features while indie game developers rely on …

Technologies Of Servitude Understanding Firmware Tpms As Interests In Personal Property, Anthony D. Rosborough

Canadian Journal of Law and Technology

Widespread computerization and embedded system design has facilitated the pervasive and latent implementation of technological protection measures (‘‘TPMs”) to restrict device firmware access. Often referred to as ‘‘digital locks,” these restrictions impose a whole host of limitations on how owners use and manage the increasing number of products and devices in which they are incorporated. In many cases, TPM restrictions can prevent activities with social, environmental, and economical benefits, including repair, repurposing, and interoperability. In response, governments around the world are now revisiting and scrutinizing their TPM anti-circumvention laws within copyright and competition policy. Beyond these perspectives, this article looks …

The Ai-Copyright Challenge: Tech-Neutrality, Authorship, And The Public Interest, Carys Craig

All Papers

Many of copyright’s core concepts—from authorship and ownership to infringement and fair use—are being challenged by the rapid rise of generative AI. Whether in service of creativity or capital, however, copyright law is perfectly capable of absorbing this latest innovation. More interesting than the doctrinal debates that AI provokes, then, is the opportunity it presents to revisit the purposes of the copyright system in the age of AI. After introducing the AI-copyright challenge in Part 1, Part 2 considers the guiding principles and normative objectives that underlie—and so ought to inform—copyright law and its response to AI technologies. It proposes …

Copyrighting Tiktok Dances: Choreography In The Internet Age, Ali Johnson

Washington Law Review

TikTok is a video-sharing social media application that launched in 2018 and has grown wildly since its inception. Many users are drawn to the platform by “dance challenges”—short dance routines of varying complexity set to popular songs that are recreated by other users, eventually going “viral” (i.e., recreated on a massive scale by other users) on the app. Going viral can provide young dancers and choreographers an opportunity to break into the highly competitive entertainment industry. However, there is a problem: due to TikTok’s interface and community practices, the original creators of a dance (who, significantly, are often young women …

Submission To Canadian Government Consultation On A Modern Copyright Framework For Ai And The Internet Of Things, Sean Flynn, Lucie Guibault, Christian Handke, Joan-Josep Vallbé, Michael Palmedo, Carys Craig, Michael Geist, Joao Pedro Quintais

Reports & Public Policy Documents

We are grateful for the opportunity to participate in the Canadian Government’s consultation on a modern copyright framework for AI and the Internet of Things. Below, we present some of our research findings relating to the importance of flexibility in copyright law to permit text and data mining (“TDM”). As the consultation paper recognizes, TDM is a critical element of artificial intelligence. Our research supports the adoption of a specific exception for uses of works in TDM to supplement Canada’s existing general fair dealing exception.

Empirical research shows that more publication of citable research takes place in countries with “open” …

The Use Of Technical Experts In Software Copyright Cases: Rectifying The Ninth Circuit’S “Nutty” Rule, Shyamkrishna Balganesh, Peter S. Menell

Faculty Scholarship

Courts have long been skeptical about the use of expert witnesses in copyright cases. More than four decades ago, and before Congress extended copyright law to protect computer software, the Ninth Circuit in Krofft Television Productions, Inc. v. McDonald’s Corp. ruled that expert testimony was inadmissible to determine whether Mayor McCheese and the merry band of McDonald’s characters infringed copyright protection for Wilhelmina W. Witchiepoo and the other imaginative H.R. Pufnstuf costumed characters. Since the emergence of software copyright infringement cases in the 1980s, substantially all software copyright cases have permitted expert witnesses to aid juries in understanding software code. …

What The Supreme Court Is Likely To Do In The Presently Pending Case Google V. Oracle, Jennifer Campbell

The University of Cincinnati Intellectual Property and Computer Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Poland’S Challenge To Eu Directive 2019/790: Standing Up To The Destruction Of European Freedom Of Expression, Michaela Cloutier

Dickinson Law Review (2017-Present)

In 2019, the European Parliament and Council passed Directive 2019/790. The Directive’s passage marked the end of a fouryear- long legislative attempt to impose more liability for copyright violations on Online Service Providers, an effort which was controversial from the start. Online Service Providers fear that the 2019 Directive, especially its Article 17, will completely change the structure of liability on the Internet, forcing providers to adopt expensive content filtering systems. Free speech advocates fear that ineffective filtering technology will infringe upon Internet users’ rights to express themselves, and legal scholars have pointed out the Directive’s inconsistency with prior European …

The Machine As Author, Daniel J. Gervais

Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications

Machines are increasingly good at emulating humans and laying siege to what has been a strictly human outpost: intellectual creativity.

At this juncture, we cannot know with certainty how high machines will reach on the creativity ladder when compared to, or measured against, their human counterparts, but we do know this. They are far enough already to force us to ask a genuinely hard and complex question, one that intellectual property (“IP”) scholars and courts will need to answer soon; namely, whether copyrights should be granted to productions made not by humans but by machines.

This Article’s specific objective is …

A Copy Of A Copy Of A Copy: Internet Mimesis And The Copyrightability Of Memes, Elena Elmerinda Scialabba

Duke Law & Technology Review

No abstract provided.

A Siri-Ous Societal Issue: Should Autonomous Artificial Intelligence Receive Patent Or Copyright Protection?, Samuel Scholz

Cybaris®

No abstract provided.