Software theft and the problem of intellectual property rights

ABSTRACT

Computers have brought many benefits to society, but they have also created new social problems such as computer crime, software theft, computer unreliability, invasions of privacy, hacking and the creation of viruses. In turn, these problems pose ethical dilemmas for the youthful profession of computing, which has yet to develop rigid codes of ethics. This is especially the case with software theft or piracy, a widespread phenomenon and a modern version of the age-old problem of intellectual property theft. For lawmakers and the computing industry, the central question is how to reward innovation without stifling creativity - but experts disagree as to whether copyright law, patent law or contract law should be used. They also disagree as to what software actually is.

REFERENCES

• 1: [fr1] Palo Alto Times Tribune, CA, 7 February 1988, cited in Software Engineering Notes, Vol. 13, No. 2, April 1988; Katherine M. Hafner et al, 'Is Your Computer Secure?' Business Week, 1 August 1988, page 53.
• 2: [fr2] The Australian, 8 March 1988 and 17 January 1989; and Anne W. Branscomb, 'Who Owns Creativity? Property Rights in the Information Age' in Tom Forester (ed.) Computers in the Human Context (Basil Blackwell, Oxford, UK and MIT Press, Cambridge, MA, 1989), reprinted from Technology Review, May-June 1988.
• 3: [fr3] Katherine M. Hafner et al; op cit, page 54.
• 4: [fr4] Hugo Cornwall, Datatheft: Computer Fraud, Industrial Espionage and Information Crime (Heinemann, London, 1987), pages 127-128.
• 5: [fr5] The Australian, 21 April 1987 (reprinted from The Times, London); Business Week, 31 August 1987, page 21 and 22 May 1989, page 83.
• 6: [fr6] The Australian, 29 November 1988.
• 7: [fr7] Mary Jo Foley, 'A Small Software Firm Takes on Uncle Sam - and Wins,' Datamation, 15 April 1988.
• 8: [fr8] 'Software in Never-Never Land,' The Australian, 17 January 1989 (reprinted from The Economist, London). For the history of copyright, see Edward W. Ploman and L. Clark Hamilton, Copyright: Intellectual Property in the Information Age (Routledge and Kegan Paul, London, 1980) and Judy Marcure, 'Copyright and Computers,' Australian Computing; Summer 1988 edition.
• 9: Pamela Samuelson, Is Copyright Law Steering the Right Course?, IEEE Software, v.5 n.5, p.78-86, September 1988 [doi>10.1109/52.7945]
• 10: [fr10] Anne W. Branscomb, op cit, page 412.
• 11: [fr11] Ben Brock, 'Windowing Patent Clouds Industry,' The Australian, 25 April 1989.
• 12: [fr12] Paul Dwyer et al, "The Battle Raging Over Intellectual Property; Business Week, 22 May 1989.
• 13: P. Marrett, Legal issues in electronic publishing, Oxford Surveys in Information Technology, Oxford University Press, Inc., New York, NY, 1988
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• 15: [fr15] Pamela Samuelson, op cit, pages 79 and 85-86.
• 16: [fr16] Anne W. Branscomb, op cit, page 408.
• 17: [fr17] Business Week, 19 May 1986. Other information from various newspaper and wire service reports.

INDEX TERMS

Primary Classification:
  K. Computing Milieux
  K.4 COMPUTERS AND SOCIETY