The Software License Unveiled

The Software License Unveiled
Author: Douglas E. Phillips
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 227
Release: 2009-06-04
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 0195341872

Millions of computer users regularly bind themselves to software license terms with the click of a mouse, usually without reading anything but the word "agree." Licenses for software as diverse as Microsoft Windows and Linux, and terms of use for websites such as Facebook, are all subject not only to intellectual property and commercial law, but also to the private law of the license, which comes in many forms, each with its advocates. Microsoft, for example, maintains that its proprietary model gives users the rights they need while creating the incentives that have made the United States the global software leader, while Richard Stallman - creator of the GNU General Public License and author of a number of free software programs - asserts that proprietary licensing enables software companies to "hoard" software they should be sharing. In The Software License Unveiled, Douglas Phillips looks at both of these extremes and questions how these proliferating but largely unread license terms affect access to software, one of the economy's most valuable resources. While highlighting the obvious divergences, he makes the more illuminating case that most current models - spanning the spectrum from proprietary to free - have one key feature in common: to an increasing extent, each license model extends, modifies, or displaces public law that would otherwise apply. Unlike books that advocate one form of licensing or another, this one reframes the debate to propose that going forward a key challenge for lawyers, scholars, policymakers, and the public is to consider whether "legislation by license" should be the means for controlling software access.

The Software License Unveiled

The Software License Unveiled
Author: Douglas E. Phillips
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 232
Release: 2009-06-01
Genre: Law
ISBN: 0199711976

Millions of computer users regularly bind themselves to software license terms with the click of a mouse, usually without reading anything but the word "agree." Licenses for software as diverse as Microsoft Windows and Linux, and terms of use for websites such as Facebook, are all subject not only to intellectual property and commercial law, but also to the private law of the license, which comes in many forms, each with its advocates. Microsoft, for example, maintains that its proprietary model gives users the rights they need while creating the incentives that have made the United States the global software leader, while Richard Stallman - creator of the GNU General Public License and author of a number of free software programs - asserts that proprietary licensing enables software companies to "hoard" software they should be sharing. In The Software License Unveiled, Douglas Phillips looks at both of these extremes and questions how these proliferating but largely unread license terms affect access to software, one of the economy's most valuable resources. While highlighting the obvious divergences, he makes the more illuminating case that most current models - spanning the spectrum from proprietary to free - have one key feature in common: to an increasing extent, each license model extends, modifies, or displaces public law that would otherwise apply. Unlike books that advocate one form of licensing or another, this one reframes the debate to propose that going forward a key challenge for lawyers, scholars, policymakers, and the public is to consider whether "legislation by license" should be the means for controlling software access.

The End of Ownership

The End of Ownership
Author: Aaron Perzanowski
Publisher: MIT Press
Total Pages: 262
Release: 2018-03-16
Genre: Law
ISBN: 0262535246

An argument for retaining the notion of personal property in the products we “buy” in the digital marketplace. If you buy a book at the bookstore, you own it. You can take it home, scribble in the margins, put in on the shelf, lend it to a friend, sell it at a garage sale. But is the same thing true for the ebooks or other digital goods you buy? Retailers and copyright holders argue that you don't own those purchases, you merely license them. That means your ebook vendor can delete the book from your device without warning or explanation—as Amazon deleted Orwell's 1984 from the Kindles of surprised readers several years ago. These readers thought they owned their copies of 1984. Until, it turned out, they didn't. In The End of Ownership, Aaron Perzanowski and Jason Schultz explore how notions of ownership have shifted in the digital marketplace, and make an argument for the benefits of personal property. Of course, ebooks, cloud storage, streaming, and other digital goods offer users convenience and flexibility. But, Perzanowski and Schultz warn, consumers should be aware of the tradeoffs involving user constraints, permanence, and privacy. The rights of private property are clear, but few people manage to read their end user agreements. Perzanowski and Schultz argue that introducing aspects of private property and ownership into the digital marketplace would offer both legal and economic benefits. But, most important, it would affirm our sense of self-direction and autonomy. If we own our purchases, we are free to make whatever lawful use of them we please. Technology need not constrain our freedom; it can also empower us.

Beyond the Code

Beyond the Code
Author: Noam Shemtov
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 451
Release: 2017-09-07
Genre: Law
ISBN: 0191026182

Although the law on infringement is relatively straightforward in relation to the copying of literal and textual elements of software, it is the copying of non-literal and functional elements that poses complex and topical questions in the context of intellectual property (IP) protection. In many cases, it is these non-literal and functional elements that contain the real value of a software product. This book concerns the copying of non-literal and functional elements of software in both the United States and European Union, using a holistic approach to address the most topical questions facing experts concerned with legal protection of software products across a range of technological platforms. The book focuses on six distinct but interrelated areas: contract, copyright, patents, trade-dress, designs and trade secrets, discussing these areas separately and in relation to one another. The book discusses software as a multilayered functional product, setting the scene for other legal discussions by highlighting software's unique characteristics. It examines models for the provision of software, addressing licensing patterns and overall enforceability, as well as the statutory and judicial tools for regulating the use of such licences. It assesses the protection of non-literal and functional software elements under EU and US laws, focusing on internal architecture, interfaces, behavioural elements and GUIs.

InfoWorld

InfoWorld
Author:
Publisher:
Total Pages: 98
Release: 1993-06-14
Genre:
ISBN:

InfoWorld is targeted to Senior IT professionals. Content is segmented into Channels and Topic Centers. InfoWorld also celebrates people, companies, and projects.

Research Handbook on Electronic Commerce Law

Research Handbook on Electronic Commerce Law
Author: John A. Rothchild
Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing
Total Pages: 637
Release: 2016-09-30
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1783479922

The steady growth of internet commerce over the past twenty years has given rise to a host of new legal issues in a broad range of fields. This authoritative Research Handbook comprises chapters by leading scholars which will provide a solid foundation for newcomers to the subject and also offer exciting new insights that will further the understanding of e-commerce experts. Key topics covered include: contracting, payments, intellectual property, extraterritorial enforcement, alternative dispute resolution, social media, consumer protection, network neutrality, online gambling, domain name governance, and privacy.

Wrap Contracts

Wrap Contracts
Author: Nancy S. Kim
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 239
Release: 2013-09-09
Genre: Law
ISBN: 0199399115

When you visit a website, check your email, or download music, you enter into a contract that you probably don't know exists. "Wrap contracts" - shrinkwrap, clickwrap and browsewrap agreements - are non-traditional contracts that look nothing like legal documents. Contrary to what courts have held, they are not "just like" other standard form contracts, and consumers do not perceive them the same way. Wrap contract terms are more aggressive and permit dubious business practices, such as the collection of personal information and the appropriation of user-created content. In digital form, wrap contracts are weightless and cheap to reproduce. Given their low cost and flexible form, businesses engage in "contracting mania" where they use wrap contracts excessively and in a wide variety of contexts. Courts impose a duty to read upon consumers but don't impose a duty upon businesses to make contracts easy to read. The result is that consumers are subjected to onerous legalese for nearly every online interaction. In Wrap Contracts: Foundations and Ramifications, Nancy Kim explains why wrap contracts were created, how they have developed, and what this means for society. She explains how businesses and existing law unfairly burden users and create a coercive contracting environment that forces users to "accept" in order to participate in modern life. Kim's central thesis is that how a contract is presented affects and reveals the intent of the parties. She proposes doctrinal solutions - such as the duty to draft reasonably, specific assent, and a reconceptualization of unconscionability - which fairly balance the burden of wrap contracts between businesses and consumers.

The Creative Artist's Legal Guide

The Creative Artist's Legal Guide
Author: Bill Seiter
Publisher: Yale University Press
Total Pages: 340
Release: 2012-06-26
Genre: Law
ISBN: 0300183542

In today's complex media environment, aspiring filmmakers and new media artists are as vulnerable as swimmers in shark-infested waters. This user-friendly guide supplies creative artists with the essential legal concepts needed to swim safely with lawyers, agents, executives, and other experts in intellectual property and business law How do I copyright my screenplay? How can I clear rights for my film project? What can I do to avoid legal trouble when I produce my mockumentary? How do I ascertain whether a vintage novel is in the public domain? Is the trademark I've invented for my production company available? What about copyright and trademark rights overseas? If I upload my film to YouTube, do I give up any rights? Bill Seiter and Ellen Seiter answer these questions and countless others while also demystifying the fundamental principles of intellectual property. Clear and thorough, this plain-spoken and practical guide is essential for anyone seeking to navigate the rapidly changing media environment of today.

Bazaar of Opportunities for New Business Development

Bazaar of Opportunities for New Business Development
Author: Jaakko Paasi
Publisher: World Scientific
Total Pages: 236
Release: 2013
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1848168918

Bazaar of Opportunities for New Business Development goes beyond the paradigm of open innovation and underlines the variety of opportunities that firms may have in innovation and new business development with external actors. This book shows readers that firms can interact, innovate, and do business with different known and unknown actors, both formally and informally, and use different levels of openness within interorganizational innovation processes. External actors, however, also mean additional risks for the firm that they should manage. The subtitle of book, Bridging Networked Innovation, Intellectual Property and Business, addresses the guidance and perspectives that the book will provide in order to better prepare the reader for innovation with external actors.Bazaar of Opportunities has a multidisciplinary approach to the subject, bringing innovation, business, legal and network management perspectives together. The findings are based on state-of-the-art practices of innovative firms in Europe, empirical data collected through interviews and case studies. Through this multidisciplinary approach and the empirical findings, the reader may gain insight on how to be successful in open and networked innovation.

Ransomware Revealed

Ransomware Revealed
Author: Nihad A. Hassan
Publisher: Apress
Total Pages: 229
Release: 2019-11-06
Genre: Computers
ISBN: 1484242556

Know how to mitigate and handle ransomware attacks via the essential cybersecurity training in this book so you can stop attacks before they happen. Learn the types of ransomware, distribution methods, internal structure, families (variants), defense strategies, recovery methods, and legal issues related to reporting ransomware incidents to authorities and other affected parties. This book also teaches you how to develop a ransomware incident response plan to minimize ransomware damage and recover normal operations quickly. Ransomware is a category of malware that can encrypt your computer and mobile device files until you pay a ransom to unlock them. Ransomware attacks are considered the most prevalent cybersecurity threats today—the number of new ransomware variants has grown 30-fold since 2015 and they currently account for roughly 40% of all spam messages. Attacks have increased in occurrence from one every 40 seconds to one every 14 seconds. Government and private corporations are targets. Despite the security controls set by organizations to protect their digital assets, ransomware is still dominating the world of security and will continue to do so in the future. Ransomware Revealed discusses the steps to follow if a ransomware infection occurs, such as how to pay the ransom through anonymous payment methods, perform a backup and restore your affected files, and search online to find a decryption tool to unlock (decrypt) your files for free. Mitigation steps are discussed in depth for both endpoint devices and network systems. What You Will Learn Be aware of how ransomware infects your system Comprehend ransomware components in simple terms Recognize the different types of ransomware familiesIdentify the attack vectors employed by ransomware to infect computer systemsKnow how to prevent ransomware attacks from successfully comprising your system and network (i.e., mitigation strategies) Know what to do if a successful ransomware infection takes place Understand how to pay the ransom as well as the pros and cons of paying Set up a ransomware response plan to recover from such attacks Who This Book Is For Those who do not specialize in the cybersecurity field (but have adequate IT skills) and want to fully understand the anatomy of ransomware threats. Although most of the book's content will be understood by ordinary computer users, it will also prove useful for experienced IT users aiming to understand the ins and outs of ransomware threats without diving deep into the technical jargon of the internal structure of ransomware.