My point exactly. If they've changed it so much that it can't be proven to be the same under the law, than technically it's not illegal.
Source code and copyright aren't very close friends as the line is blurred in the sand as to where one authors work ends and another begins... Cheers, Kevin -----Original Message----- From: Mary Jo Sminkey [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Sunday, March 12, 2006 12:11 PM To: CF-Talk Subject: Re: OT: Copyright Attorney >Did you sell the source as is? If so and if they've altered the program >enough, it's not illegal to resell it. Don't get me wrong, I think you >should definitely pursue this, but after a certain percentage of changes >have been made, it's not considered the same source anymore. This is absolutely incorrect. Copyright law protects derivative use of material as well. The only legal use of copyright material is "fair use" which has specific guidelines that would need to be met. Of course, if the changes were so significant that the source code was totally unrecognizable, it might be hard to make a case that it was derivative. But it definitely is not legal to do it. The main issue in cases like this is whether the source code is registered or not. While registration is not required by law, your legal recourse is much more limited if you did not register the copyright. It's fairly cheap so I always make sure to register each major release of my software. It's also best to set up your purchasing area so customers must agree to your licensing before purchase so there can be no argument that they know the terms and understood the code was copyrighted. It always amazes me the dishonesty of some people out there. I have dealt with this issue a number of times unfortunately. In the worst case, I actually had someone email me anonymously to blow the whistle on their employer...they were selling copies of my software to their customers without paying for the licenses. These types of people always think they will get away with it, but invariably, someone realizes what's going on and reports them. Good luck. Hopefully this is all a misunderstanding but if not, find a good intellectual property lawyer in your area. Usually a threatening letter from a lawyer is enough for most people to do the right thing. ------------------------- Mary Jo Sminkey http://www.cfwebstore.com CFWebstore E-Commerce ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~| Message: http://www.houseoffusion.com/lists.cfm/link=i:4:235159 Archives: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/threads.cfm/4 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/lists.cfm/link=s:4 Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=89.70.4 Donations & Support: http://www.houseoffusion.com/tiny.cfm/54
