Published on

Software and the Law

Table of Contents

Software has 2 roles:

  1. A set of instructions for a computer.
  2. A way of collaborating to solve problems.

There are 5 major categories of software law:

Originally designed for books + text, it gives the creator an exclusive right over making copies for some time. Typically it's the lifetime of an author plus about 75 years.

Copyright protects form, not the ideas. You could create a social media platform similar to Facebook as long as its details aren't exactly like it.

  1. Public domain: you have permissions to do whatever you want with the work. When a copyright expires, it goes into public domain.

  2. Academic: require that you give credit. Classic examples include:

    1. BSD (originating from Berkeley)
    2. MIT (originating from MIT)

  3. Reciprocal: require that you be as generous as the original author. A classic example is GPL, the GNU Public License.

  4. Corporate: "sharing but public". Some examples are Apple, Eclipse. You can copy the source code, but if you make changes, you have to give them back to the owner.

  5. Secret: the source code is not shown. You have the right to run the program and nothing else. This is the most common license in the commercial world.

When building an application, your individual modules may come with a mixture of licenses, so be sure to respect each of them.

(2) Patent

Originally applied to mechanical inventions, then chemical, and in general, practical, novel ideas.

Patents cover not just form but also ideas. Gives a monopoly for typically about 7 years.

(3) Trade Secrets

Applies to ideas that you don't publish, things a company keeps secret. A popular example is the formula for Coca-Cola!

These are formalized with nondisclosure agreements (NDAs). Industry workers have to sign such agreements before being hired.

[You should always] read the fine print - there's no standard NDA. If someone tells you there's a standard, don't believe it - Dr. Eggert

(4) Trademarks

Trademarks aim to avoid confusion among consumers.

You don't want a certain brand name to be confused for another, like a store named McDonald's that has no relation to the official (trademarked) McDonald's.

(5) Personal Data

For example, HIPPA protects the personal information of medical patients.

Enforcement Rules

Infringement

Determining the infringement is a matter of its own.

The enforcement mechanism is a civil suit. This is legal protection, meaning it's slow and expensive.

Technical Protection

Thus, you also want technical protection, technical means to prevent infringement before it happens. For example:

  • You keep the source code secret. That makes it harder for people to copy your system.
  • Use SaaS such that the service provider has the software and runs it, with the source code and executables hidden from the end user.
  • Obfuscation - deliberately use a terribly efficient/mangled version of the executable so it's very hard to reverse-engineer.

Software Licensing

License

  • It's NOT a contract. A contract is an exchange.
  • It's a grant of permission.
  • It's often part of a contract.
  • The grant often has strings attached (read the fine print!).
Authors