Various Kinds of Computer Software Licences Nelka Fikeys Krmić LL.M. Legal Affairs Manger Ericsson Nikola Tesla d.d. Zagreb
Legal Protection of Computer SW by different kinds of intellectual property rights: 1. copyright protection 2. trademark protection 3. patent protection under particular conditions 4. contract protection (confidentiality provisions)
Copyright Protection Croatian Law on Copyright and Related Rights published in 2003 and amended in 2007, is harmonized with EU appropriate directives, including directives which protect computer programs and data bases
Ericsson Nikola Tesla d.d. as Software Producer the core business of Ericsson Nikola Tesla (ETK): to develop, produce, sell and maintain very sofisticated communication products, including telecommunication products the brain of such products is computer SW therefore ETK develops and produces a lot of computer SW based on Ericsson licenced SW, but also own SW products (over 600 electrical engineers work in our R&D unit) however ETK also buys SW from other producers and participates in developing particular SW in frame of some EU projects
Software Bought from Others ETK has to buy SW from others to use them as SW tools/applications in different business activities or to built them in own products developed by ETK therefore the SW licence agreements as well as consortium agreements to develop particular SW (with other project participans) are very important agreements in ETK daily business life
SW Licence Agreements often very complicated/demanding, huge (a lot of pages) with small letters and a lot of references to copyright holder web links which have to be read in details and checked again from time to time, because the conditions on web links could be changed often as agreement templates of powerful banks and insurance companies (“take it or leave it”)
SW Licence Agreements must be studied in details in team of experts (lawyer, engineers, selling people, sourcing people, finance people); otherwise could be very expensive if licence provisions are breached short list of licensee’s rights long list of licensee’s obligations short list of licensor’s obligations long list of licensor’s rights (to licensee’s reports, licensor’s audits, contolling rights related to licensee’s end users etc.)
Various Kinds of SW Licences proprietary SW (copyright SW) open source SW (copyleft SW) free SW and freeware SW on line and off line SW shrinkwrap and clickwrap SW with SW package SW tailored based on special needs of their purchasers with particularly tailored licence agreement
Proprietary SW commercial SW with warranties and compensations in case of damages/injuries or if third succssed in legal procedure due to injured intellectual property rights sometimes the escrow of source code is required
Open Source SW “as is” good no warranties, no liabilities always risky related to possible infringment of intellectual property rights of some third person(s) commercial SW products with “built in” OSS in general have to be “free available” to be used under OSS licence agreement conditions
The most important thing To avoid possible problems, infringments of IPRs, legal procedures, damages/fines, each SW licence must be studied and respected in details.