Hi! Thanks for the question.
First of all please take note that in our disclaimer below, answers
provided in Google Answers are general information and are not meant
to substitute for professional legal advice.
Before we start answering your question, let us define first some
terms so as we could proceed smoothly.
There are great differences between the definition of patents and
copyrights and thereby we must take them into account.
Patents – “A patent for an invention is the grant of a property right
to the inventor, issued by the Patent and Trademark Office. The term
of a new patent is 20 years from the date on which the application for
the patent was filed in the United States or, in special cases, from
the date an earlier related application was filed, subject to the
payment of maintenance fees. US patent grants are effective only
within the US, US territories, and US possessions.”
Copyrights – “Copyright is a form of protection provided to the
authors of “original works of authorship” including literary,
dramatic, musical, artistic, and certain other intellectual works,
both published and unpublished. The 1976 Copyright Act generally gives
the owner of copyright the exclusive right to reproduce the
copyrighted work, to prepare derivative works, to distribute copies or
phonorecords of the copyrighted work, to perform the copyrighted work
publicly, or to display the copyrighted work publicly”
“What Are Patents, Trademarks, Servicemarks, and Copyrights?”
http://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/pac/doc/general/whatis.htm
So you can see that in order to avail of patents, your software has to
be an invention or something haven’t been done before. Taking note of
this your best bet is for a copyright.
Copyrights protect the following types of work:
1. "literary works;"
2. "musical works, including any accompanying words"
3. "dramatic works, including any accompanying music"
4. "pantomimes and choreographic works"
5. "pictorial, graphic, and sculptural works"
6. "motion pictures and other audiovisual works"
7. "sound recordings"
8. "architectural works"
Computer or software programs like code for search engines are viewed
as “literary works”.
“These categories should be viewed broadly. For example, computer
programs and most ‘compilations’ may be registered as ‘literary
works’; maps and architectural plans may be registered as ‘pictorial,
graphic, and sculptural works.’”
The UK also has almost similar general policies on their websites
about patents and copyrights so the latter is also the one you should
be after.
“What about computer programs and material stored in computers?”
“Under the 1988 Copyright designs and patents act, computer programs
are now protected as literary works. Databases may receive copyright
protection for the selection and arrangement of the contents. Also
database right may exist in a database. This is an automatic right and
protects databases against the unauthorised extraction and
re-utilisation of the contents of the database. Database right lasts
for 15 years from the making but, if published during this time, then
the term is 15 years from publication.”
“Common copyright questions”
http://www.copyrightservice.co.uk/copyright/copyright_questions.htm
Our next link provides a great background about software copyrights. I
will provide small snippets from the article but it would be best to
read them in their entirety to get a better perspective.
“In the case of software, copyright protection may apply not only to
the literal computer code itself, but also to other non-literal
aspects of the program, such as its look on the screen, its way of
interfacing with the user, etc.”
“For software -- or any work -- to be eligible for copyright
protection, it must be (1) original, (2) creative, and (3) fixed in a
tangible medium of expression.”
“In the case of software, the "originality" requirement really only
means that the program must represent the independent effort of the
author and not be copied from someone else's code or program. In some
cases, an "original" work may have some elements that are completely
original and some that are not, in which case, only the original
portions will be protected by copyright.”
“Similarly, the "creativity" hurdle is not hard to overcome…works
that, as a practical matter, show any real creativity will be
accepted, with the self-evident caveat that the more creative a work
is, the more protection it will receive.”
“A Software Copyright Primer”
By Jay Hollander
http://www.gigalaw.com/articles/2000-all/hollander-2000-02-all.html
As with any legal matter, there are still some gray areas regarding
copyrights as well. This article provides a summary of different court
decisions regarding copyright infringement.
“Software and copyright law”
http://www.swiss.ai.mit.edu/6805/articles/int-prop/software-copyright.html
If you want to know the details of the registration procedures for
copyrights in the US and the UK you will find these resources helpful.
US Copyright Office
http://www.copyright.gov/register/literary.html
UK Copyright Service
http://www.copyrightservice.co.uk/register/info.htm
In your statement “It would be brought together and branded under my
companies name”. I think trademarks will be of great assistance as
well.
“A trademark is a word, phrase, symbol or design, or a combination of
words, phrases, symbols or designs, that identifies and distinguishes
the source of the goods of one party from those of others.”
So in order to protect the name of your search engine name that will
be tied to your business then it would also be wise to get a
trademark.
“TRADEMARK, COPYRIGHT OR PATENT?”
http://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/tac/doc/basic/trade_defin.htm
“HOW DO I FILE A TRADEMARK APPLICATION?”
http://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/tac/doc/basic/howtofile.htm
I highly suggest that before making any move, it would be best to seek
professional legal help so as to know what are the proper courses of
actions and what other solutions that might be out there for your
situation.
Search terms used:
Software patents copyrights
UK copyright
I hope these links would help you in your research. Before rating this
answer, please ask for a clarification if you have a question or if
you would need further information.
Thanks for visiting us.
Regards,
Easterangel-ga
Google Answers Researcher |
