Intellectual Property Law Commons^™

Computers, Copyright And Substantial Similarity: The Test Reconsidered, 14 J. Marshall J. Computer & Info. L. 47 (1995), Jeffrey D. Coulter

UIC John Marshall Journal of Information Technology & Privacy Law

Courts focus on the Substantial Similarity test to determine copyright infringement. They also use testimony from experts and lay people. As a result, there is a tension between preserving artist’s rights and preserving a competitive market. This tension is especially problematic in the context of copyright protection of computer software. Nonetheless, copyright law does protect computer software. Resulting amendments in the Copyright Act defined "computer program" and ensured that copyright protection was extended to all computer programs. The Substantial Similarity test applied to computer programs creates several concerns. Lack of access to expert testimony in the crucial second phase of …

Letter From The Editor, Richard P. Klau

Richmond Journal of Law & Technology

Over the last eight months, several people have asked why we decided to publish The Journal exclusively online. These concerns are not insignificant -- any embrace of a new technology should be made without blinders on. We were excited by the possibilities of publishing online, but the fears that we would not be taken seriously were very real. These fears have, however, been overcome by the enthusiasm which has greeted The Journal.

Lawfutures, Or, Will You Still Need Me, Will You Still Feed Me, When I'M Sixty Four?, Stephen T. Maher

Richmond Journal of Law & Technology

I cannot imagine what it was like to practice law without a photocopy machine. In the first years of my practice, I received a few briefs typed the old fashioned way, on onion-skin paper with five sets of carbons in between. But since then, we have witnessed a continuing march of progress in information processing. From the mag card, to the memory typewriter, to the System 6, to the dedicated word processor, to the personal computer and now to the computer network, we have seen technology, when working correctly, providing tremendous assistance in meeting the demands of our busy lives. …

Overreaching Provisions In Software License Agreements, Michael Liberman

Richmond Journal of Law & Technology

Historically, software license agreements emerged as the most popular means of protection of proprietary rights in computer software. As a common form of contract and trade secret protection, software licenses coexist with other forms of intellectual property rights such as patent and copyright. The importance of these forms of protection has recently increased. Where the licensor fails to consider the implications of the relation between these forms of protection, the licensor's attempts to maximize contractual protection while restricting the licensee's activities regarding the licensed software may result in overreaching. Under these circumstances, a court may invalidate the license agreement in …

Contracts, Copyright And Preemption In A Digital World, I Trotter Hardy

Richmond Journal of Law & Technology

Copyright is designed to provide some form of protection against unauthorized use of original informational materials. The rapid shift of information production and distribution to electronic form, with its corresponding ease of copying, naturally makes copyright-dependent industries nervous. Much talk in the news and on the "net" these days is about the future of copyright law, a law developed in an age of print and now perhaps too tied to that medium to have ready application to today's information technology.

Trademarks Along The Infobahn: A First Look At The Emerging Law Of Cybermarks, Dan L. Burk

Richmond Journal of Law & Technology

Use of the global Internet computer network is rising exponentially. As Internet subscription increases disagreements between users are expected to arise, just as where any sizeable number of human beings interact, disagreements may be expected to arise. To date, on-line disputes have been primarily dealt with via informal solutions, such as the polite conventions of "netiquette" shared by Internet users. However, as the community of Internet users grows increasingly diverse, formal dispute resolution mechanisms, embodied as law and legal institutions, may be called upon by the parties to resolve disagreements. For example, several acrimonious disputes have already arisen over the …

Apple V. Microsoft: Virtual Identity In The Gui Wars, Joseph Myers

Richmond Journal of Law & Technology

The company that controls the interface of the next major operating system will have the ability to set the standards for application software. It was not surprising that Apple Corporation began its fight to stop Windows from being that major operating system after Microsoft Corporation introduced the various versions of its Windows software and announced plans for this program to replace the already widely selling DOS operating system. Unfortunately, Apple chose to conduct this war on the complex and often confusing battleground of copyright law, which ultimately proved to be its downfall.

Freeing Copyright From Formalities, Shira Perlmutter

Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Copyright Law And Social Dialogue On The Information Superhighway: The Case Against Copyright Liability Of Bulletin Board Operators, Niva Elkin-Koren

Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal

No abstract provided.

The National Information Infrastructure, Steven Metalitz

Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal

No abstract provided.

A Future Without Formalities, Irwin Karp

Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Putting Cars On The "Information Superhighway": Authors, Exploiters, And Copyright In Cyberspace, Jane C. Ginsburg

Faculty Scholarship

The advent of the "Information Superhighway" has sparked much speculation about the roles of authorship, of readership, and of literary property in the vast system of interlinked computer networks that has come to be known as "cyberspace." Through computers linked to a digital network, users can access and add to vast quantities of material. At least in theory, every computer user can become his, or her own publisher, and every terminal can become a library, bookstore, or audio and video jukebox.

The prospect of pervasive audience access to and ability to copy and further disseminate works of authorship challenges the …

§ 117 - The Right To Adapt Into The Fourth Generation And The Source Code Generator's Dilemma, 12 J. Marshall J. Computer & Info. L. 537 (1994), Marvin N. Benn, Richard J. Superfine

UIC John Marshall Journal of Information Technology & Privacy Law

Section 117, of The Copyright Act of 1976, which regulates the copying of a computer software program by an authorized or registered user, serves as an exception or defense to an allegation of software infringement. This exception is grounded in the concept that an individual who lawfully purchases a computer software program should have the right to copy that program to some extent. However, courts have not developed a uniform approach to analyzing Section 117. This paper offers a union of tests used individually by courts to resolve this problem of legal inconsistency. The courts have developed a three-step approach …

The Copyright And Trade Secret Protection Of Communication Software: Placing A Lock On Interoperability, 13 J. Marshall J. Computer & Info. L. 17 (1994), Steven N. Dupont

UIC John Marshall Journal of Information Technology & Privacy Law

The author argues that courts must take into account industry demands for interoperable computer products in determining the proper scope of protection enjoyed by computer software. Part II of the article discusses the technical aspects of a communications software system in the context of a hypothetical software developer. Part III of the article analyzes how compatibility concerns affect the determination of the proper scope of copyright and trade secret protection. Part IV of the article gives an overview of the anti-trust concerns in light of the current debate surrounding interoperability. The article concludes that economically adequate legal protection for communications …

Has The Computer Changed The Law?, 13 J. Marshall J. Computer & Info. L. 43 (1994), David C. Tunick

UIC John Marshall Journal of Information Technology & Privacy Law

The computer has caused changes to over forty areas of the law. While not exhaustive, the areas of law examined in this article show that computers have caused certain areas of the law to evolve while others remain virtually unchanged. Computer use has not changed in the area of commercial law. Computer contracts can involve hardware, software or services. Whether the Uniform Commercial Code applies to acquisitions has been the subject of much litigation turning on whether the software is canned or custom. Courts analyze the custom software cases under existing tests including the "dominant element" test, the "end product …

Brown V. Iowa Legislative Council: Struggling With The Application Of The Freedom Of Information Act To Computerized Government Records, 13 J. Marshall J. Computer & Info. L. 123 (1994), Elizabeth M. Dillon

UIC John Marshall Journal of Information Technology & Privacy Law

In 1996, Congress passed the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) to promote public access of information held by the federal government. Consequently, fifty states followed the lead by passing similar statutes providing public access to information held by state governments. While FOIA statutes facilitates the dissemination of information, the use of "records" in the statutes proves to be problematic in this computer age. Part of the accessible records is the information of redistricting of the states, a federal constitutional requirement on the states every ten years. In the Brown v. Iowa Legislative Council, plaintiff sought to gain access to the …

Watch Your E-Mail - Employee E-Mail Monitoring And Privacy Law In The Age Of The Electronic Sweatshop, 28 J. Marshall L. Rev. 139 (1994), Laurie Thomas Lee

UIC Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Exclusive Right To Read, Jessica Litman

Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal

No abstract provided.

From Deontology To Dialogue: The Cultural Consequences Of Copyright, Barbara Friedman

Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Software Patent Protection: A Problem-Solution Theory For Harmonizing The Precedent, 12 Computer L.J. 25 (1993), Lance L. Vietzke

UIC John Marshall Journal of Information Technology & Privacy Law

No abstract provided.

The New Medium Of Expression: Introducing Virtual Reality And Anticipating Copyright Issues, 12 Computer L.J. 175 (1993), Greg S. Weber

UIC John Marshall Journal of Information Technology & Privacy Law

No abstract provided.

The Best Mode Requirement In United States Patent Practice In 1993, 12 J. Marshall J. Computer & Info. L. 353 (1993), Kenneth R. Adamo

UIC John Marshall Journal of Information Technology & Privacy Law

This article discusses the best mode requirement set forth in section 112 of the United States Patent Act. This requirement is unique to United States patent law and must be satisfied by every utility patent application filed with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. This article then discusses how decisions of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit have helped clarify and refine the best mode requirement and its application to patents in the field of computer technology (i.e., In re Hayes Microcomputer Products). Then it discusses how these holdings have made this already difficult area …

Recent Developments In Computer Law: An Update, 12 J. Marshall J. Computer & Info. L. 395 (1993), Bradley J. Hulbert

UIC John Marshall Journal of Information Technology & Privacy Law

This article provides an overview of case law that had developed in 1993 relating to computers, summarizing cases in the following fourteen areas of the law: 1. Administrative - This section briefs a case holding that the Bush Administration's e-mail records fell within the scope of the Federal Records Act. 2. Anti-trust - This section includes: an overview of a case defining "sham" lawsuits and a summary of a case holding that a large software firm's supplier requirements may define a relevant market for an anti-trust analysis. 3. Civil Procedure - This section gives a brief summary of a case …

An Analysis That Is Not "Ad Hoc": The Bifurcated Uniform Analysis That The Federal Courts Should Follow To Determine Computer Program Copyright Nonliteral Infringement, 12 J. Marshall J. Computer & Info. L. 485 (1993), Michael J. Bendel

UIC John Marshall Journal of Information Technology & Privacy Law

This article examines the issues surrounding software copyright protection and the problem of inconsistent court analysis across the country. After reviewing the problems particular to software copyright, the author recommends a new course of court analysis that would bring consistent analysis and decisions to this growing area of law. Courts have begun to examine the scope of protection the Copyright Act grants to computer software beyond the literal text of the software's programming language. Two classifications for computer programs have developed: literal, which focuses on the actual text of the program, and non-literal, which is concerned with organization, structure and …

Law In The Electronic Brothel: How Postmodern Media Affect First Amendment Obscenity Doctrine, Kenneth W. Masters

Seattle University Law Review

This Comment seeks to examine the implications of media ecology models for the past, present, and possible future of obscenity doctrine. Section II of this Comment applies the first model in examining the historical origins of obscenity doc- trine in light of media ecology. This analysis of history reveals a critical presupposition about the effects of media on human behavior.

The Protection Of High Technology Intellectual Property, 11 Computer L.J. 29 (1991), Jack E. Brown

UIC John Marshall Journal of Information Technology & Privacy Law

No abstract provided.

Can A Computer Language Be Copyrighted? The State Of Confusion In Computer Copyright Law, 11 Computer L.J. 97 (1991), Steve Posner

UIC John Marshall Journal of Information Technology & Privacy Law

No abstract provided.

An Economic Analysis Of Computer Software Copyright: A Welfare Model Of Intellectual Property Rights, 11 Computer L.J. 173 (1991), Barron Yanaga

UIC John Marshall Journal of Information Technology & Privacy Law

No abstract provided.

Copyright Protection Of Computer Software In Japan, 11 Computer L.J. 287 (1991), Judith J. Welch, Wayne L. Anderson

UIC John Marshall Journal of Information Technology & Privacy Law

No abstract provided.

Bent Fish: Issues Of Ownership And Infringement In Digitally Processed Images, John Gastineau

Indiana Law Journal

No abstract provided.