A History of Copyright in the United States

Since the Statute of Anne almost three hundred years ago, U.S. law has been revised to broaden the scope of copyright, to change the term of copyright protection, and to address new technologies.

Association of Research Libraries (2003). Articles>Intellectual Property>Copyright>History

How International Copyright Law Works

If you photocopy an article in the U.S., you apply U.S. copyright law. If you photocopy an article in France, you apply French copyright law. That's the way international copyright law works: You apply the law of the country in which use of the work is made. This is called "national treatment" and is the underlying principle in the leading copyright convention, the Berne Copyright Convention.

Harris, Lesley Ellen. Communication World Bulletin (2005). Articles>Intellectual Property>Copyright>International

How to Write Copyright Pages  

A well-designed user guide contains a copyright page, which provides copyright information for your company's products as well as for any third-party products mentioned in your document.

Amott, Lyndsey. Docsymmetry (2004). Articles>Intellectual Property>Copyright>Technical Writing

Hyperlinks, Frames and Intellectual Property

This paper is concerned with how the use of hyperlinks and frames to present material from another website may infringe the rights of the originating site.

Hudson, Roger. Usability.com.au (1999). Articles>Intellectual Property>Copyright>Hypertext

The Importance of 'Electronic Publication Rights'

Are publishers entitled to place the contents of their newspapers and periodicals into electronic databases and on CD-ROM without first receiving the permission of the individual freelance authors whose contributions are included on those periodicals? At least one court has said 'no.' This article explains why.

Landau, Michael. GigaLaw.com (2000). Articles>Intellectual Property

The Importance of International Laws for Web Publishers

Because of the inherent global nature of the Internet, a web publisher in one country cannot be unconcerned about laws in other countries. For example, some countries impose language requirements on web sites, while others may seek to apply their own defamation laws. This article explores some of the international legal consequences of web publishing.

Morris, Stan. GigaLaw.com (2001). Articles>Intellectual Property>International

Information Process Patents in the U.S. and Europe: Policy Avoidance and Policy Divergence  

Patents on software and business methods appear to have a pivotal position in today's economy, yet they have remained a policy backwater in which scope of patentable subject matter has expanded without legislative input. This is changing as Europe struggles with patent reform. A push by the European Commission to validate and promote software patents has been opposed by many companies and professionals, and especially the open source community. In this process, it has become clear that Europe opposes the broad non-technical patents on business methods that are now available in the U.S., signaling a major rift in international standards of patentability.

Kahin, Brian. First Monday (2003). Articles>Intellectual Property>Patents

Innovation Architecture

As the original end-to-end architecture of the Internet is increasingly compromised, and as copyright and patent law expand their reach, the commons of code, content and creativity that launched the World Wide Web is being quietly smothered. While Lessig focuses on technology and the law, his dark prophecies are relevant to the practice of information architecture.

Morville, Peter. Semantic Studios (2002). Articles>Intellectual Property>Copyright

Inspiration vs. Theft: The Thin Gray Line

Inspiration does not come easy for most, and that includes some of the world's top designers and creative directors. Everyone has experienced what we call 'designer's cramp' (a designer's version of 'writer's block') at some time or another. There have been numerous articles about the problem and a ton of suggestions. Some of them work, but many fail miserably. Lance Arthur recently wrote an article in A List Apart called 'Creative Notions,' which is one of the best I've seen in a long time about the sketchy subject. Coincidentally, Lance is perhaps one of the most widely known designers on the web today, and therefore suffers from a great deal of plagiarism. When asked about this, he says, 'A dubious distinction, surely. I think having a somewhat higher profile than other personal sites contributes to my reign under this title.'1 Why is that? I believe because he is a creative person whose designs are original and inspirational. However, as long as web browsers come with the 'view source' button, plagiarism

Finck, Nick. Digital Web Magazine (1999). Articles>Intellectual Property>Copyright>Plagiarism

Intellectual Property

Intellectual property is the area of law that enables designers, innovators and other creative people to protect and exploit their work and to prevent misappropriation by others. It is concerned with the legal protection of 'the good idea'. Failure to obtain such protection can have serious economic and operational consequences.

Stansfield, Iain. Design Council (2005). Articles>Intellectual Property>Regional>United Kingdom

Intellectual Property and Economic Development: Opportunities for China in the Information Age

The information sector of the Chinese economy, although it has grown in recent years, remains a sector with a far greater potential for growth than has occurred to date. Intellectual property law can help fulfill China's further aspirations for growth of its economy. Markets for information products and services can only thrive when intellectual property rights are secure.

Samuelson, Pamela. University of California Berkeley (1999). Articles>Intellectual Property>Copyright>China

Intellectual Property Arbitrage: How Foreign Rules Can Affect Domestic Protections  

Differences in national intellectual property rules may cause economic activity to shift from one jurisdiction to another such that a higher protection rule in one jurisdiction will be undermined by lower protection rules in other jurisdictions. This article illustrates this phenomenon with four examples: as to rules on the enforceability of anti-reverse engineering clauses of software licenses, the protectability of bio-engineered research tools, peer to peer file sharing, and exceptions to anti-circumvention rules. It considers several options nations may have to respond to intellectual property arbitrages, none of which is likely to be very effective.

Samuelson, Pamela. University of California Berkeley (2003). Articles>Intellectual Property>Copyright>International

Intellectual Property Crash Courses

Over 250 in-depth articles on intellectual property law, including crash courses, FAQs and articles on specific topics, as well as explanations of technology from the law's perspective.

Engelfriet, Arnoud. Ius Mentis (2005). Resources>Intellectual Property>Education

Intellectual Property for Technical Communicators: A Primer  

This paper presents a high-level overview of intellectual property issues, such as how to deal with patents, copyrights, and trademarks in the United States (other countries have other laws; this information may not apply to them). Technical communicators deal with intellectual property, and the protection of intellectual property, in day-to-day work. We must therefore know the basic rules for protecting our company's intellectual property interests, and must pay strict attention to dealing correctly with our and others' intellectual property matters.

Delain, Nancy Baum. STC Proceedings (2001). Articles>Intellectual Property>TC

Intellectual Property for Technical Communicators: A Primer  

This paper presents a high-level overview of intellectual property issues, such as how to deal with patents, copyrights, and trademarks in the United States (other countries have other laws; this information may not apply to them). Technical communicators deal with intellectual property, and the protection of intellectual property, in day-to-day work. We must therefore know the basic rules for protecting our company’s intellectual property interests, and must pay strict attention to dealing correctly with our and others’ intellectual property matters.

Delain, Nancy Baum. STC Proceedings (2001). Articles>Intellectual Property>TC

An Intellectual Property Law Primer for Multimedia and Web Developers

An understanding of legal issues is essential to success in the multimedia industry.

Brinson, J. Dianne and Mark F. Radcliffe. Electronic Frontier Foundation (1996). Resources>Intellectual Property

Intellectual Property Law Primer for Multimedia Developers

This primer will help you understand the legal issues in developing and distributing multimedia works. It is based on the Multimedia Law Handbook from Ladera Press, which has been endorsed by the Interactive Multimedia Association. This summary of the law should not be viewed as 'answering' most questions (the Multimedia Law Handbook discusses these issues in more detail in 340 pages and includes eighteen sample agreements to show how these issues are dealt within actual transactions; you can order the book by calling 800-523-3721). Legal matters in multimedia are frequently complex and you should not rely on the information in this primer alone. You should consult with experienced counsel before making any final decisions. Multimedia products require a knowledge of the four major forms of intellectual property as well as the laws governing rights of publicity, defamation and libel.

Brinson, J. Dianne and Mark F. Radcliffe. Timestream (1994). Articles>Intellectual Property>Copyright>Multimedia

Intellectual Property Rights for Digital Library and Hypertext Publishing Systems

Computers and the concomitant capability they have provided for making copyrighted works available in digital form in networked environments have created many new kinds of expressive opportunities. Computer technology together with communications technology has enabled authors to create digital libraries and hypertext publishing systems. Active development of such systems is now underway. While some difficult technical problems must be solved to build these systems, technical obstacles are thought to be surmountable. Less clear, however, is what kind of intellectual property scheme can be used to make digital library or hypertext publishing systems commercially viable.

Samuelson, Pamela and Robert J. Glushko. University of California Berkeley (1993). Articles>Intellectual Property>Copyright

International Issues in Copyright: Frequently Asked Questions  

The area of copyright can be confusing and presents numerous questions. Juillet provides answers to some common copyright questions, such as who holds the copyright in a work-for-hire situation and whether a copyright needs to be registered to have protection.

Juillet, Christopher. Intercom (2007). Articles>Intellectual Property>Copyright>International

Internet Technology and Intellectual Property  

This article outlines the complex legal environment surrounding the Internet, copyright law, and intellectual property.

Le Vie, Donald S., Jr. Intercom (2000). Articles>Technology>Intellectual Property

IRTC Copyright and Intellectual Property

This page is a list of links to sites that contain information about copyright.

Soltys, Keith. IRTC (2001). Articles>Intellectual Property>Copyright

Is Copyright Blind to the Visual?

This article argues that, with respect to the copyright protection of works of visual art, the general uneasiness that has always pervaded the relationship between copyright law and concepts of creativity produces three anomalous results. One of these is that copyright lacks much in the way of a central concept of 'visual art' and, to the extent that it embraces any concept of the 'visual', it is rooted in the rhetorical discourse of the Renaissance. This means that copyright is poorly equipped to deal with modern developments in the visual arts. Secondly, the pervasive effect of rhetorical discourse appears to have made it particularly difficult for copyright law to strike a meaningful balance between protecting creativity and permitting its use in further creative works. Thirdly, just when rhetorical discourse might have been useful in identifying the significance and materiality of the unique one-off work of visual art, copyright law chooses to ignore its implications.

Macmillan, Fiona. Visual Communication (2008). Articles>Intellectual Property>Copyright>Visual Rhetoric

Keyword or Trademark? Beware of PPC Poachers

When it comes to online advertising, one of the tools your competitor has may be your company's name, trademark or service mark. Google and Overture allow advertisers to purchase company and product names as keywords in pay-per-click campaigns. This allows companies to poach potential customers from their competition by having their ads appear whenever a consumer searches for a competitor by name.

Janisch, Troy. evolt (2005). Articles>Intellectual Property>Trademark

Knowing Your Rights  

The increasing popularity of Web publishing isn't just changing the way that intellectual property (creative works such as text, images, and even software) is distributed, it's also changing the way such work is bought, sold, licensed, and - in some cases 'borrowed.'

Roberts, Paul. Adobe Magazine (1998). Articles>Intellectual Property>Copyright

Legally Speaking: Did MGM Really Win the Grokster Case?  

MGM's media blitz has given the impression that the entertainment industry won an overwhelming and broad victory against peer to peer (p2p) file sharing and file sharing technologies when the Supreme Court announced its decision in the MGM v. Grokster case on June 27, 2005. MGM can, of course, point to the 9-0 vote that vacated the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals' decision that Grokster could not be charged with contributory infringement because it qualified for a safe harbor established by the Supreme Court in 1984 in its Sony v. Universal decision (see my Legally Speaking column of June 2005). The safe harbor protects technology developers who know, or have reason to know, that their products are being widely used for infringing purposes, as long as the technologies have, or are capable of, substantial noninfringing uses (SNIUs). The Court in Grokster saw no need to revisit the Sony safe harbor. However, it directed the lower courts to consider whether Grokster actively induced users to infringe copyrights, a different legal theory.

Samuelson, Pamela. University of California Berkeley (2006). Articles>Intellectual Property>Copyright>History