Beyond the Code: Protection of Non-Textual Features of Software

Beyond the Code: Protection of Non-Textual Features of Software

Journal article

1 online resource

9780191848377 eBook

Although the law of infringement is relatively straightforward on the copying of literal and textual elements of software, the copying of non-literal and functional elements poses complex and topical questions in the context of intellectual property protection. In most cases, such elements contain the real value of a software product. This book examines the copying of non-literal and functional elements of software in both the United States and the European Union, using a holistic approach to address the most topical questions facing experts concerned with legal protection of software products across a range of technological platforms. The book focuses on five distinct but interrelated areas: contract, copyright, patent, trade-mark and trade-dress laws, and trade secrets. It also considers the protection of designs, in the context of graphical user interfaces. The book looks at software as a multilayered functional product, setting the scene for other legal discussions by highlighting software’s unique characteristics. It analyses models for the provision of software, addressing licensing patterns and overall enforceability, as well as the statutory and judicial tools for regulating the use of such licences. Further, it explores the protection of non-literal and functional software elements under EU and US copyright law, with emphasis on internal architecture and behavioural elements. Finally, it describes the application of trade-dress protection to software’s ‘look and feel’, particularly relevant to the provision of software in the cloud environment.

Online resource

Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2017

eng