@mark@gobhicks
** No, according to the companies, we're buying a license.**
What exactly do you think that means, “to buy a license”? A license is an agreement between two parties, whereby one party (licensor) grants certain rights to the other party (licensee). That presupposes that the licensor has exclusive rights that are under his control: for a software license, the copyright in the software. Buying a license means buying permission to do certain things that the licensor could otherwise stop you from doing, in this case on the basis of copyright. If there was no copyright, why buy a license?
**And installing and using software is not copyright controlled in ANY Berne signatory. So using the software is not copyright controlled. Much as the software sellers would like otherwise.**
WIPO COPYRIGHT TREATY
adopted by the Diplomatic Conference on December 20, 1996
Article 1
Relation to the Berne Convention
(1) This Treaty is a special agreement within the meaning of Article 20 of the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works, as regards Contracting Parties that are countries of the Union established by that Convention. This Treaty shall not have any connection with treaties other than the Berne Convention, nor shall it prejudice any rights and obligations under any other treaties.
Article 4
Computer Programs
Computer programs are protected as literary works within the meaning of Article 2 of the Berne Convention. Such protection applies to computer programs, whatever may be the mode or form of their expression.
And
Council Directive 91/250/EEC of 14 May 1991 on the legal protection of computer programs
1. In accordance with the provisions of this Directive, Member States shall protect computer programs, by copyright, as literary works within the meaning of the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works. For the purposes of this Directive, the term 'computer programs` shall include their preparatory design material.
And
(UK) Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988
3 Literary, dramatic and musical works
(1) In this Part –
"literary work" means any work, other than a dramatic or musical work, which is written, spoken or sung, and accordingly includes –
(a) a table or compilation other than a database,
(b) a computer program,
(c) preparatory design material for a computer program, and
(d) a database;
** Copyright being a civil infraction has to show harm done.
So the software company is due £0 from each filesharer.**
I didn’t express a view about the level of damages awarded in this case. I only pointed out that a court has the right to award damages on a basis other than the actual loss to the copyright holder.
**1) Nope, if you can take it you can have it. We then go into laws but according to the law, filesharing is a civil tort and you can only claim financial losses as proven.**
OK, if I may clarify: if you can’t afford a license for a piece of software, you have no right to copy/use/supply it.
**2) Yes, we know OSS relies on copyright. This has **** all to do with this.
… except for the many that clearly want to have their cake and eat it.