Enjoy Upto 50% OFF on Assignment Solutions!
UK Intellectual Property Law for Software: Copyright and Patents Case Study By Native Assignment Help.
Ph.D. Writers For Best Assistance
Plagiarism Free
No AI Generated Content
If you want to be successful in your assignments and improve your grades, use our case study at Native Assignment Help. Our team of proficient assignment help experts is knowledgeable and experienced enough to produce outstanding papers that meet academic standards. Thus, come together with us at Native Assignment Help for sure success in everything.
The legal system of the UK provides rights to protect intellectual property along with enforcement mechanisms that can be compared to US legislation. The UK is a member of WIPO (World Intellectual Property Organisation). It is also a member of intellectual property protection agreements such as the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works, the Universal Copyright Convention, the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, the Geneva Phonograms Convention, and the Patent Cooperation Treaty (Bently et al. 2022). The official UK government body which is responsible for intellectual property rights is Intellectual Property Office (IPO). The official website includes comprehensive information on the law and practice of the UK (Stokes, 2019). The annual report of IP Crime and Enforcement shows that harm related to IP is caused to the economy of the UK (Margetts and Dorobantu, 2019).
This Essay includes the application of Civil and Criminal Law in protecting the right of intellectual property in software patent alongwith Social, Economic, Ethical and Political contexts where intellectual property law is implemented. The issues are highlighted related to socio-legal nature, Changes in law to accommodate new and developing technologies. This essay also sheds light on European and international instruments that may impact English law in software intellectual property. Recommendations for the audience are also prepared after analysing all the aspects.
Software is an important aspect of information technology and it is required by an individual as well as business organisations. Without software, a computer device or mobile phone is useless (Saeidi et al. 2019). An individual or an organisation can develop software and it can be protected in several ways. It helps to protect software from copying or stealing by using the correct type of intellectual property.
It can protect a work and stop unauthorised usage of the software as per “the Copyright, Designs, and Patents Act 1988 (CPDA 1988) and Directive 91/250/EC (the Software Directive)”. It does not involve any costs and CPDA 1988 protects databases, design material, and computer programs (International Trade Administration, 2022). Copyright lasts for 70 years even if the owner dies. Copyright can prevent the following:
An individual can prove infringement if someone else copied the original copy. U/S 21 of CDPA 1988, one cannot make or adapt someone else's work as it is restricted. However, the issue arises when it comes to non-literal copying (Wagner et al. 2019).
Non-literal copying is the current issue in protecting intellectual property rights for software. It does not include one program to another; however, it copies the functionality, operations, styles, or interfaces of another software (Alahmari and Duncan, 2020). However, an infringement is assessed once it is observed that the work should be protected.
SAS Institute Inc. v. World Programming Ltd (2013): This case involved the copyright protection of software functionality. The court held that while copyright does not protect software functionality itself, it can protect the expression of that functionality. The defendant had developed software that emulated the functionality of the claimant's software, and the court found that this amounted to copyright infringement.
Patent right is another important intellectual property right in the UK for software developers. They can protect software by using Patent law in the UK, however, the process is not easy. UKIPO and EPO provide software patents to the developers. However, in order to qualify, it is necessary to meet the requirements stated in the patent act. Requirements for software Patents are stated as under:
In the UK, it is hard to get patent rights for the software unless there is a “technical effect” that is embodied in the software.
Integrity is the major focus in ethical analysis and it is infringed if there has work ‘derogatory treatment’.
Copyright can only protect the codes; however, it cannot protect the ideas that are contained. Hence, the idea needs to be fundamentally innovative, rather than the code itself, or if the code is simple or short, it is necessary to be careful about disclosing the source of the code (Ghafur et al. 2019). For example, if a person can understand by looking at the code, what is done in the software and then recreated the same functions from scratch that means the person has not infringed copyright law.
The UK government is trying to change some laws in order to make copyright law more effective for software. AI is introduced in order to create as well as innovate software to stay competitive (GovGrant, 2023). Three major areas are stated:
TRIPS agreement is one of the major agreements of the World Trade Organisation and a legal agreement between WTO members. Intelligent property right provides various rights such as the right of patent, trademark, copyright, and secret of trades. IP should be unique in order to track cybercrimes; hence, every mobile device and computer has unique IP to track its records if reported. In order to provide protection to software IP should be provided by software owners. Hackers can hack any software and can obtain private information that is stored in that software. However, IP can help to protect data securely in the software. Many software provides users warnings that data is not safe on this site. Hence, users need to use it wisely.
On the other hand, many software shows the terms and conditions that the data will be protected securely and users may use extra protection by using encoded passwords so that no one can access it without permission (Wagner et al. 2019). Without software mobile devices and computers will be of no use, hence, users cannot avoid usage of the software. It provides the opportunity to expand business globally by using software services, hence, professional data is also stored in software. Components of software are categorised into two parts Operating system and Libre/Floss. Proprietary software can be used safely by the users in terms of intellectual property. It is a kind of private property that can be used by an individual or by a company. The data is protected by different laws and regimes of intellectual property. Some software needs licenses in order to use it so that data can be protected securely in the software. Moreover, no hacker can have access to it as they will also need to get a license if they try to use it.
Figure 1: Access to Justice
It is a debated topic how data can be protected by software in terms of legal aspects so that an individual can use it. Windows majorly manages the internal activities of a computer, hence, if Windows is hacked then it is a real threat for the user. Hence, programming code is set for every IP to protect the data of the users. As opined by Saeidi et al. (2019), program code makes it more valuable and is used to resolve various issues. Various regimes are imposed in order to protect the intellectual property of the software. Legal rights are created in order to restrict the usage of the internet and social media and the law of trademark also protects the intellectual property rights of the users. No one can copy the features of the software as per the copyright and an individual needs to take permission if wants to create similar software. The legal case of “Diamond v Diehr (450 US 175 (1981)” upheld a software patent by the court (supreme, 2023).
The rights of IP are infringed when an invention or creation protected by laws is copied or used without the consent of the owner. It is treated as civil infringement if someone is copying a program or code or functionality of others’ software.
Copyright is infringed when a person performs any of the restricted acts by copyright without any consent of the right holder. The owner of the copyright has the following rights such as lending and rental, economic rights, performance in public, distribution, transmission electronically including adaptation, and broadcasting (Yeboah-Ofori et al. 2019). Owners also have some moral rights that help to protect non-economic interests. It contains attribution rights, object-to-derogatory treatment rights, and false attribution right.
The right owner can act against the person if an individual violates the laws of copyright. Any proven infringement may lead to disciplinary action and the accused person is responsible for the damage. The accused person receives a copyright infringement notice through email, letter, or phone call.
Nova Productions Ltd v. Mazooma Games Ltd (2007): This case addressed the issue of substantial copying in software copyright. The court ruled that substantial copying can occur even if there is no line-by-line or literal copying of code. In this case, the defendant had created a software game that was like the claimant's game, and the court found that the overall structure, sequence, and organization of the software were substantially similar.
CPDA 1988 established an independent tribunal called the Copyright Tribunal. The key role of this tribunal is to adjudicate disputes between copyright owners and collecting societies. However, it does not work on cases related to copyright infringement. Trading standard authorities mainly deal with IP investigations related to copyright. The economic right of the copyright holder is protected by the UK under common law. Copyright is the right that applies automatically from the time of creation without registration.
It is important to follow intellectual property rights while using software in order to protect data. It helps to use the internet and social media in an effective manner. There are many users who are following the correct standards in order to stay protected with cyber security (Yeboah-Ofori et al. 2021). Here are some pieces of advice that can help users to use software safely:
We are experts in the law field, and at Native Assignment Help, we assist you in becoming proficient in law. With us, you get a perfectly well-reasoned and researched law assignment. Of course, we do not go wrong when it comes to criminal law, constitutional law, or any other branch of the legal system; we have whatever you want in your undergraduate degree program.
Conclusion
The above essay confirms that intellectual property means something that is created or invented by someone and it is unique in nature. Rights related to intellectual property help to protect software from copying or stealing. Copyright is provided automatically when software is created in order to protect its nature, function, and operation. It also helps in making money for the owner from the intellectual property. It is difficult to meet all the criteria for the right of patent, however, copyright is quite an easier way to get protection for the software. Copyright protects software and prevents it from unauthorised usage under CPDA 1988. It helps to protect computer programs of a computer, databases, and design materials.
The above essay shows the application of Civil and Criminal law in protecting the intellectual property of software with related case laws. Current situations and issues are also highlighted in terms of copyright. Social, economic, ethical as well as political analysis is done in the context of intellectual property. Issues related to socio-logical nature are discussed critically in the above section. It is found that various changes are made to the law with new and developing technologies. How European and international instruments impact English law in the context of software intellectual property is also highlighted. Research, analysis, and evaluation are done on Copyright infringement in order to understand it better with relevant case law. Recommendations are made for the audience so that everyone can use them wisely. Thus, it can be concluded that intellectual property rights are imposed by the UK government and it helps to accuse another person who violates the laws and legislation of copyright act.
References
Alahmari, A. and Duncan, B., (2020, June). Cybersecurity risk management in small and medium-sized enterprises: A systematic review of recent evidence. In 2020 international conference on cyber situational awareness, data analytics and assessment (CyberSA) (pp. 1-5). IEEE.
Bently, L., Sherman, B., Gangjee, D. and Johnson, P., (2022). Intellectual property law. Oxford University Press.
Ghafur, S., Grass, E., Jennings, N.R. and Darzi, A., (2019). The challenges of cybersecurity in health care: the UK National Health Service as a case study. The Lancet Digital Health, 1(1), pp.e10-e12.
Gov.uk, (2023). IP crime and enforcement for businesses. Available at: Available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/ip-crime-and-enforcement-for-businesses/ip-crime-and-enforcement-for- [Accessed on 17th May 2023]businesses#:~:text=IP%20crime%20and%20infringement.,those%20rights%20or%20their%20representative
GovGrant, (2023), Can you patent software in the UK? Available at: <https://www.govgrant.co.uk/knowledge-hub/can-you-patent-software-in-the-uk/#:~:text=You%20can%20indeed%20get%20a,meet%20in%20order%20to%20qualify.? [Accessed on 17th May 2023]
International Trade Administration, (2022), Protecting Intellectual Property. Available at: <https://www.trade.gov/country-commercial-guides/united-kingdom-protecting-intellectual-property#:~:text=The%20UK%20legal%20system%20provides,Intellectual%20Property%20Organization%20(WIPO).> [Accessed on 17th May 2023]
Kinsara, O.A., (2021). Clash of Dilemmas: How Should UK Copyright Law Approach the Advent of Autonomous AI Creations?. Cambridge L. Rev., 6, p.62.
Maglaras, L., Ferrag, M.A., Derhab, A., Mukherjee, M., Janicke, H. and Rallis, S., (2019). Threats, protection and attribution of cyber attacks on critical infrastructures. arXiv preprint arXiv:1901.03899.
Margetts, H. and Dorobantu, C., (2019). Rethink government with AI. Nature, 568(7751), pp.163-165.
Parn, E.A. and Edwards, D., (2019). Cyber threats confronting the digital built environment: Common data environment vulnerabilities and block chain deterrence. Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management.
Saeidi, P., Saeidi, S.P., Sofian, S., Saeidi, S.P., Nilashi, M. and Mardani, A., (2019). The impact of enterprise risk management on competitive advantage by moderating role of information technology. Computer standards & interfaces, 63, pp.67-82.
Stokes, S., (2019). Digital copyright: law and practice. Bloomsbury publishing.
supreme. (2023). Diamond v. Diehr, 450 U.S. 175 (1981). Available at: https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/450/175/ [Accessed on 17th May 2023]
UK Government (2019), IP Crime and Enforcement for business. Available at: <https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/ip-crime-and-enforcement-for-businesses/ip-crime-and-enforcement-for-businesses#:~:text=IP%20crime%20and%20infringement.,those%20rights%20or%20their%20representative.> [Accessed on 17th May 2023]
UK Parliament, (2019), Social media and criminal offences,. Available at: <https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld201415/ldselect/ldcomuni/37/3704.htm> [Accessed on 17th May 2023]
Urquhart, L., Laffer, A. and Miranda, D., (2022). Working with Affective Computing: Exploring UK Public Perceptions of AI enabled Workplace Surveillance. arXiv preprint arXiv:2205.08264.
Wagner, T.D., Mahbub, K., Palomar, E. and Abdallah, A.E., (2019). Cyber threat intelligence sharing: Survey and research directions. Computers & Security, 87, p.101589.
Yeboah-Ofori, A., Islam, S., Lee, S.W., Shamszaman, Z.U., Muhammad, K., Altaf, M. and Al-Rakhami, M.S., (2021). Cyber threat predictive analytics for improving cyber supply chain security. IEEE Access, 9, pp.94318-94337.
Go Through the Best and FREE Case Studies Written by Our Academic Experts!
Native Assignment Help. (2024). Retrieved from:
https://www.nativeassignmenthelp.co.uk/uk-intellectual-property-law-for-software-copyright-and-patents-case-study-24654
Native Assignment Help, (2024),
https://www.nativeassignmenthelp.co.uk/uk-intellectual-property-law-for-software-copyright-and-patents-case-study-24654
Native Assignment Help (2024) [Online]. Retrieved from:
https://www.nativeassignmenthelp.co.uk/uk-intellectual-property-law-for-software-copyright-and-patents-case-study-24654
Native Assignment Help. (Native Assignment Help, 2024)
https://www.nativeassignmenthelp.co.uk/uk-intellectual-property-law-for-software-copyright-and-patents-case-study-24654
Evaluating Technology in Luxury Events: Southampton Boat Show by Petrea...View or download
Comparative Analysis Of CSR Initiatives In The Public Vs Private...View or download
Changes in Bladder Instillation Practices for Female Patients Are you in need...View or download
Business Plan and Analysis: Aquaberry Private Limited Case Study 1. Company...View or download
MG630: Change Management and Organisational Development: Strategies for...View or download
Project Management For Healthcare Case Study Introduction - Project...View or download
Get your doubts & queries resolved anytime, anywhere.
Receive your order within the given deadline.
Get original assignments written from scratch.
Highly-qualified writers with unmatched writing skills.
We utilize cookies to customize your experience. By remaining on our website, you accept our use of cookies. View Detail
Hi! We're here to answer your questions! Send us message, and we'll reply via WhatsApp
Please enter a messagePleae enter your phone number and we'll contact you shortly via Whatsapp
We will contact with you as soon as possible on whatsapp.
Ph.D. Writers For Best Assistance
Plagiarism Free
No AI Generated Content
offer valid for limited time only*