Legal Protection of Software
A Handbook
1st Edition
Published in 2002
Book
Hardback
180 pages
978-1-85811-294-7 (ISBN)
Description
"Software production is a major industry. The richest man in the world got rich by producing software. Yet protecting software assets in law in the UK has been dogged by problems... The problem seems to lie not so much with a weakness in the law, as that in many cases the claimant chooses the wrong weapon or fails to ensure that it has been "loaded" in advance!"
* Introduction.
* How can you best defend your rights or your client's rights in such a valuable asset?
* How can you prevent the software being pirated?
* How best to improve your chances of bringing a successful infringement action?
Answering these questions, the authors' approach is a unique one: rather than leaving the reader to work out how to apply the law from a general description, the authors take each stage needed to produce and maintain commercially robust software and examine what rights arise at each stage. They look at how they can be enforced, if necessary, including how to launch a claim if the damage has already been done and an infringing copy of your software is about to be or is actually being marketed by a rival.
Contents include:
* Intellectual Property Rights, Confidentiality and Know-how
* Recruiting Staff for Software Products
* Commissioning Software
* Specifications
* Programming and Testing
* Updates and Documentation
* Licensing Software
* Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights
* Practical precedents are provided when appropriate.
Legal Protection of Software is an investment that will repay its cost many times over: whether you are a software industry professional, managing a medium to large IT function or a lawyer.
* Introduction.
* How can you best defend your rights or your client's rights in such a valuable asset?
* How can you prevent the software being pirated?
* How best to improve your chances of bringing a successful infringement action?
Answering these questions, the authors' approach is a unique one: rather than leaving the reader to work out how to apply the law from a general description, the authors take each stage needed to produce and maintain commercially robust software and examine what rights arise at each stage. They look at how they can be enforced, if necessary, including how to launch a claim if the damage has already been done and an infringing copy of your software is about to be or is actually being marketed by a rival.
Contents include:
* Intellectual Property Rights, Confidentiality and Know-how
* Recruiting Staff for Software Products
* Commissioning Software
* Specifications
* Programming and Testing
* Updates and Documentation
* Licensing Software
* Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights
* Practical precedents are provided when appropriate.
Legal Protection of Software is an investment that will repay its cost many times over: whether you are a software industry professional, managing a medium to large IT function or a lawyer.