Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/18/84; site amd.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!amd!eager From: eager@amd.UUCP (Mike Eager) Newsgroups: net.legal Subject: Re: Copyright notices in net.sources Message-ID: <664@amd.UUCP> Date: Wed, 28-Nov-84 15:25:44 EST Article-I.D.: amd.664 Posted: Wed Nov 28 15:25:44 1984 Date-Received: Thu, 29-Nov-84 04:31:30 EST References: <819@utastro.UUCP> Distribution: net Organization: AMD Applications, Santa Clara, CA Lines: 52 > > What exactly is required to copyright a program (or other > work)? Do I need to send off a form somewhere or just put the > copyright notice on the program? Am I covered legally if I just > grant permission to copy and distribute but don't include a copyright > statement? How much? > > Not a lawyer.... > I'm not a lawyer either, but I have done a good bit of investigation into software copyright. Basic requirement is that *when published* the work contain a statement of the form Copyright 1984, Michael J. Eager where the name is the name of the owner of the copyright. The current law provides that the author owns copyright from the time of creation. There is no need for any statement. When published, the work may become public domain unless there is a copyright statement. Transmission via net.sources most likely constitutes publication, as does any kind of sale, or distribution of more than a very limited number of copies. The circle-c is used to claim an international copyright. It may be substituted for the word copyright. There seems to be mixed opinion about abbreviations for 'copyright' or 'circle-c'. It appears that 'COPR.' is acceptable for 'copyright'. It is not clear that '(C)' or '(c)' is the same as the circle-c. Abbreviations of the owner's name also seem questionable. But, IBM has the following on their ROMs in the IBM/PC: 'COPR. 198x IBM'. To ENFORCE a copyright infringement claim, the copyright must be filed with the Library of Congress. This is done at nominal cost ($10 I believe). They have some standards of submission for software, including listings and some forms of machine readable source. For large source files, one of the rules is to provide the first and last 25 pages of listing, containing the copy- right notice. This may be done at any time prior to filing a copyright infringement suit. You must file exactly the same work as the work being infringed. This means that if you find that version 1.0 is being copied, and you are currently working on version 5.9, the submission must be of 1.0. If you have gotten to this point, you've talked to your lawyer and now know ALL the details. Trying to protect object code seems to be awkward/unclear/confused. A lot depends on the court. Apple/Franklin upheld the copyright of object code. Datacash did not. -- Mike Eager (amd!eager)