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From: dan@idis.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.micro
Subject: Re: Piracy? The LAW
Message-ID: <209@idis.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 3-Jun-83 19:33:52 EDT
Article-I.D.: idis.209
Posted: Fri Jun  3 19:33:52 1983
Date-Received: Tue, 7-Jun-83 00:50:20 EDT
Lines: 26


References: security.306


Unless the Supreme Court has made a recent decision about the matter,
trade secret protection and copyright protection are not incompatible.
It is true that published materials cannot be trade secrets, but the
copyright laws also protect unpublished materials.  It it probably
not appropriate to place the standard copyright statement,
something like
	Copyright (C) 1983 by Whoever
on proprietary material because the year is intended to be the year
of publication.

Unpublished materials are *automatically* copyrighted.  They don't
have to be labelled with a copyright statement.

The problem with copyright protection for trade secrets is that an
almost inconsequential copyright violation can completely ruin a
trade secret and penalties for inconsequential copyright violations
are not very intimidating.  The serious penalties only apply after
a work is registered with the copyright office and even then there
is no percentage in prosecuting individuals who make single copies.

				Dan Strick
				[decvax|mcnc]!idis!dan