COPYRIGHT

Two simple questions:

1. If company A licenses company B the right to use software created by company A for the purposes company B to sell their product, has there been a publishing of the software?

Assume the license agreement is boilerplate with nondisclosure agreements and confidentiality obligations.

2. Does programing in a particular language make a software with distinct functions a derivative of that programming language?

1. a license is merely permission to use the product the way the license agreement mandates/allows. Publishing occurs when copies are made: download to the computer hard drive; upload to the internet; copy CD/DISK to clients/customers.

2. yes but that derivative has two components : the already copyrighted and possibly patented material and that part which is new. You must get permission from original patent/copyright holder to distribute and must account to them for their portion. Trust me == otherwise you would have a big suit on your hands.



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I am a law school graduate. What I offer is mere information, not to be construed as forming an attorney client relationship.

Published material: The definition of published is the distribution of a work to the public
i. “of a work” = copies or phonorecords
ii. "to the public" = as distribution to persons under no explicit or implicit restrictions with respect to disclosure of the contents.

1. by sale or other transfer of ownership, or by rent, lease, or lending; or

2. if there has been an offering to distribute to a group of persons for purposes of further distribution, public performance, or public display.

This definition means that a license agreement is not publishing per se, because "to the public" is "the general public." Is this a good legal interpretation?