Ethics in Information Technology, Reproduce work

Fourth Edition Prepare derivative works based upon the work

Chapter 6 Author may grant exclusive right to others
Intellectual Property Copyrights (cont’d.)
Objectives Copyright term
As you read this chapter, consider the following Copyright law guarantees developers the rights to
questions: their works for a certain amount of time
1. What does the term intellectual property Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act
encompass, and why are organizations so Created after 1/1/78, life of the author plus 70 years
concerned about protecting intellectual Created but not published or registered before
property? 1/1/78, life of the author plus 70 years; no
2. What are the strengths and limitations of expiration before 12/31/2004
using copyrights, patents, and trade secret Created before 1978 still in original or renewable
laws to protect intellectual property? term of copyright, 95 years from the date the
3. What is plagiarism, and what can be done copyright was originally secured
to combat it? Copyrights (cont’d.)
4. What is reverse engineering, and what Types of work that can be copyrighted
issues are associated with applying it to Architecture
create a look-alike of a competitor’s Art
software program? Audiovisual works
5. What is open source code, and what is the Choreography
fundamental premise behind its use? Drama
6. What is the essential difference between Graphics
competitive intelligence and industrial Literature
espionage, and how is competitive Motion pictures
intelligence gathered? Copyrights (cont’d.)
7. What is cybersquatting, and what strategy Types of work that can be copyrighted (cont’d.)
should be used to protect an organization Music
from it? Pantomimes
Pictures
What Is Intellectual Property? Sculptures
Term used to describe works of the mind Sound recordings
Distinct and “owned” or created by a person or Other intellectual works:
group As described in Title 17 of U.S. Code
Copyright law Copyrights (cont’d.)
Protects authored works Must fall within one of the preceding categories
Patent law Must be original
Protects inventions Evaluating originality can cause problems
Trade secret law Fair use doctrine
Helps safeguard information critical to an Allows portions of copyrighted materials to be used
organization’s success without permission under certain circumstances
Copyrights Maintains balance between protecting an author’s
Established in the U.S. Constitution rights and enabling public access to copyrighted
Article I, Section 8, Clause 8 works
Grants creators of original works the exclusive right Factors to consider when evaluating the use of
to: copyrighted material
Distribute Copyrights (cont’d.)
Display Fair use doctrine factors include:
Perform Purpose and character of the use
Nature of the copyrighted work Copyrights (cont’d.)
Portion of the copyrighted work used Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA)
Effect of the use upon the value of the copyrighted Civil and criminal penalties included
work Governs distribution of tools and software that can
Key concept: an idea cannot be copyrighted, but be used to circumvent technological measures
the expression of an idea can be used to protect copyrighted works
Provides safe harbors for ISPs whose
Copyrights (cont’d.) customers/subscribers may be breaking copyright
Copyright infringement laws
Copy substantial and material part of another’s ISP must comply with “notice and takedown
copyrighted work procedures” that grant copyright holders a process
Without permission to halt access to alleged infringing content
Software copyright protection
Raises many complicated issues of interpretation Patents
Copyright law should not be used to inhibit Grant of property right to inventors
interoperability between the products of rival Issued by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
vendors (USPTO)
Copyrights (cont’d.) Permits an owner to exclude the public from
The Prioritizing Resources and Organization for making, using, or selling the protected invention
Intellectual Property (PRO-IP) Act of 2008 Allows legal action against violators
Increased enforcement and substantially increased Prevents independent creation as well as copying
penalties for infringement Extends only to the United States and its territories
General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) and possessions
Trade agreement between 117 countries
Created World Trade Organization (WTO) to Patents (cont’d.)
enforce Applicant must file with the USPTO
Despite GATT, copyright protection varies greatly USPTO searches prior art
from country to country Takes an average of 35.3 months from filing an
application until application is issued as a patent or
Copyrights (cont’d.) abandoned
The WTO and the WTO TRIPS Agreement (1994) Prior art
Many nations recognize that intellectual property Existing body of knowledge
has become increasingly important in world trade Available to a person of ordinary skill in the art
Established minimum levels of protection that each Patents (cont’d.)
government must provide to the intellectual An invention must pass four tests
property of members Must be in one of the five statutory classes of items
Covers copyright, patents, and trade secrets Must be useful
Must be novel
Must not be obvious to a person having ordinary
Copyrights (cont’d.) skill in the same field
World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Items cannot be patented if they are:
Agency of the United Nations Abstract ideas
Advocates for the interests of intellectual property Laws of nature
owners Natural phenomena
WIPO Copyright Treaty provides additional Patents (cont’d.)
copyright protections for electronic media Patent infringement
Making unauthorized use of another’s patent
No specified limit to the monetary penalty
Copyrights (cont’d.) Software patent
Protects feature, function, or process embodied in Trade Secrets
instructions executed on a computer Trade secret
20,000 software-related patents per year have Business information
been issued since the early 1980s Represents something of economic value
Some experts think the number of software patents Requires an effort or cost to develop
being granted inhibits new software development Some degree of uniqueness or novelty
Generally unknown to the public
Patents (cont’d.) Kept confidential
Before obtaining a software patent, do a patent Information is only considered a trade secret if the
search company takes steps to protect it
Software Patent Institute is building a database of Trade Secrets (cont’d.)
information Trade secret law has a few key advantages over
Software cross-licensing agreements patents and copyrights
Large software companies agree not to sue each No time limitations
other over patent infringements No need to file an application
Small businesses have no choice but to license Patents can be ruled invalid by courts
patents if they use them No filing or application fees
Average patent lawsuit costs $3 - $10 million Law doesn’t prevent someone from using the same
Patents (cont’d.) idea if it is developed independently
Defensive publishing Trade secret law varies greatly from country to
Alternative to filing for patents country
Company publishes a description of the innovation Trade Secret Laws
Establishes the idea’s legal existence as prior art Uniform Trade Secrets Act (UTSA)
Costs mere hundreds of dollars Established uniformity across the states in area of
No lawyers trade secret law
Fast Computer hardware and software can qualify for
Patent troll firm trade secret protection
Acquires patents with no intention of manufacturing The Economic Espionage Act (EEA) of 1996
anything; instead, licensing the patents to others Penalties of up to $10 million and 15 years in prison
Patents (cont’d.) for the theft of trade secrets
Standard is a definition or format
Approved by recognized standards organization or Employees and Trade Secrets
accepted as a de facto standard by the industry Employees are the greatest threat to trade secrets
Enables hardware and software from different Unauthorized use of an employer’s customer list
manufacturers to work together Customer list is not automatically considered a
Submarine patent trade secret
Patented process/invention hidden within a Educate workers about the confidentiality of lists
standard Nondisclosure clauses in employee’s contract
Does not surface until standard is broadly adopted Enforcement can be difficult
Patents (cont’d.) Confidentiality issues are reviewed at the exit
Patent farming involves: interview
Influencing a standards organization to make use of
a patented item without revealing the existence of
the patent Employees and Trade Secrets (cont’d.)
Demanding royalties from all parties that use the Noncompete agreements
standard Protect intellectual property from being used by
competitors when key employees leave
Require employees not to work for competitors for
a period of time