Software License Agreements Research Articles

Accounting of computer programs in commercial medical organizations

No modern commercial organization, including a medical profile, can do without the active use of computer programs in its activities — they are necessary for the management of these organizations, the administration of their activities, as well as directly in the process of providing medical services. At the same time, the cost of computer programs can be extremely significant, but there is still no unambiguous position on their accounting in regulatory documents. This year, the Non-governmental accounting Regulator “Accounting Methodological Center” in its recommendation “Non-exclusive rights to use the results of intellectual activity” outlined its position on accounting for licensed rights to computer programs, determining their useful life, recognition as intangible assets or expenses of the current period. When conducting research, we used such methods as analysis and synthesis, comparison, grouping method, analogy method, logical approach, systematic approach. As a result of the conducted research, this article, in particular, presents sound approaches to the reflection of computer software license agreements in accounting and accounting (financial) statements. The results of this study will be of interest to a wide range of readers studying various problems of modern Russian and foreign accounting, and can also be used in the educational process of higher educational institutions.

'It’s Not Going to Stop Till You Wise Up': Can Software and SaaS License Agreements be Renewed Automatically in New York?

Does New York’s “evergreen clauses” law apply to software and Software-as-a-Service license agreements? New York’s original “evergreen clauses” law was first passed in 1961, long before the software industry came into existence. Although New York is now a major technology hub, the case law does not offer a conclusive answer to this question. Software vendors should tread carefully.

An open source solution to a common collection problem: the Africa image and map portal

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the Africa image and map portal (AIMP) project’s origins and development, along with its applications to date. This paper includes methods and a step-by-step appendix so that the project can be reproduced at other institutions. Design/methodology/approach AIMP was created with a suite of free and open source software, including QGIS, Mapbox.js and GitHub. Built around the concept of an interactive index map, AIMP allows for geographic searching of maps, posters and images from Indiana University’s (IU) African Studies collections. This paper presents a case study for the use of this geographic discovery tool at an academic library. Findings AIMP has allowed comparison of collection strengths with research interests of IU African Studies affiliates and to make strategic collection development decisions that will best serve the authors’ patrons. The instruction applications of AIMP are also full of potential. To date, the Librarian for African Studies has used the portal to familiarize faculty, as well as undergraduate and graduate students, with the range of image and map resources available to them, in a variety of settings. Social implications AIMP allows researchers around the world to discover materials through a geographic search, dramatically connecting and increasing access to and discoverability of these important collections. The use of free and open source geospatial software (foss4g) means that the interface does not rely on an institution’s proprietary software-licensing agreements, making it replicable for other institutions. This use of foss4g widens access to maps, spatial data, images and posters of Africa held by IUL to a global audience. Originality/value While interactive index maps are popular among map libraries, AIMP uniquely acts as a discovery portal for a variety of media, including images and posters. In this way, AIMP works to overcome institutional silos and increase discoverability of these important collections to a global audience.

Ghost writer in the machine: the politics of determining the machinic/expressive functions of software

ABSTRACTThe 1978 Report of the Commission on New Technological Uses of Copyrighted Works laid groundwork for three contemporary struggles over the politics of digital technologies: copying software, modifying software, and End User License Agreements. I critically analyze the document, situating it within a genealogy of digital media, computational history, and communication philosophy. Beginning with the question of whether software is communication, the report articulates theoretical concerns relevant today, including: post/cyborg-humanism; materiality; form and content; inscription and legibility; and function vs. expression. I conclude that the unarticulated, animating question was to identify what counts, ethically and politically, as a creative body.

An ontology based trust verification of software license agreement

When we install software or download software, there will show up so big mass document to state the rights and obligations, for which lots of person are not patient to read it or understand it. That would may make users feel distrust for the software. In this paper, we propose an ontology based verification for Software License Agreement. First of all, this work proposed an ontology model for domain of Software License Agreement. The domain ontology is constructed by proposed methodology according to copyright laws and 30 software license agreements. The License Ontology can act as a part of generalized copyright law knowledge model, and also can work as visualization of software licenses. Based on this proposed ontology, a software license oriented text summarization approach is proposed which performances showing that it can improve the accuracy of software licenses summarizing. Based on the summarization, the underline purpose of the software license can be explicitly explored for trust verification.

ALGUNOS PROBLEMAS DEL AGOTAMIENTO DE LOS DERECHOS DE PROPIEDAD INTELECTUAL RESPECTO DE LAS LICENCIAS DE SOFTWARE

La figura del agotamiento de los derechos de propiedad intelectual en relación con los contratos de licencia de software genera los mismos problemas que se pueden presentar en otros negocios jurídicos que tienen por objeto otras obras protegidas por el derecho de autor. Hoy, por ejemplo, se discute sobre cuál es el acto jurídico que puede habilitar el agotamiento de los derechos, cuáles son los derechos que se agotan mediante esta figura; incluso, respecto de la forma en que los contratos de licencia deben ser interpretados cuando hay diferencias sobre las disposiciones que pueden o no dar origen al agotamiento. Todos estos cuestionamientos son igualmente aplicables a los programas de computador y a las obras musicales o literarias. Sin embargo, el presente artículo, fruto de una ponencia del autor en la Universidad de Chile, trata en concreto dos problemas relevantes para la industria del software y los contratos de licencia allí utilizados; estos son la interpretación de los contratos y la calificación de la naturaleza de las copias objeto de descargas digitales. Los dos problemas identificados son enfrentados a la figura del agotamiento de los derechos de propiedad intelectual para concluir la necesidad de revisar los criterios de interpretación utilizados en estos contratos, y para evidenciar la necesidad de volver a categorizar las denominadas copias digitales como “bienes digitales tangibles”. <div> </div>

Netherlands: International Software License Agreement As Purchase Agreement under the CISG and the Exhaustion- Doctrine

Netherlands: International Software License Agreement As Purchase Agreement under the CISG and the Exhaustion- Doctrine

What We’ve Learned From Software License Agreements: A Response to Comments

This is a response to comments by Eyal Zamir, Lisa Bernstein, Assaf Zusman, and Tal Zarsky made in the Hebrew University Symposium on The Scholarship of Florencia Marotta-Wurgler and to be published in the Jerusalem Review of Legal Studies.

A Performance Comparison on Characteristics of Static and Dynamic Software Watermarking Methods

With the recent advancement in computing environments, software plays increasingly important role in real world applications. The time and effort for developing software are also increasing. Software license agreements are required from users to protect such software as intellectual properties of developers. However, the cases of software theft or license infringement are increasing every year. To cope with this problem, there have been several researches for protecting software licenses. In this paper, we introduce several approaches for software watermarking methods, which are technical approaches for identifying software copyright information. We compare their characteristics and performances in several evaluation metrics. Software watermarking methods are expected to be practical approaches for protecting and detecting the cases of software theft in several applications.

De la ficha terminológica a la ficha traductológica

The complex variables involved in mediating between asymmetrical legal realities explain, to a great extent, the limitations of traditional terminological resources (particularly, bilingual legal dictionaries) as working tools for legal translators. After a brief review of these limitations, a new approach to the development of terminological resources is presented that responds to the real needs of legal translators and draws on advances in Legal Translation Studies. This change of paradigm is illustrated by a terminological database designed for the English-Spanish translation of technological law, more precisely, for the localization of software license agreements (mostly from the United States) for Spain. The lexicographical work is contextualized, and the features and advantages of the proposed terminological entries are described in detail. These entries are called “translation-oriented terminological entries” (fichas traductológicas) because of their distinctive translation dimension, particularly the inclusion of comments on the acceptability of terminological options on the basis of comparative legal analysis in different translation scenarios. This aspect greatly contributes to the added value of the approach, which is intended as a model for similar applications in legal translation.

The EULA’s labyrinth: Mapping the process

After close observation of the general practices of translating End-User License Agreements (EULAs) from English into Spanish, it was found that there were inconsistencies in the way in which translation companies dealt with the problem of the legal terms and principles found in this type of document. Some companies accounted for the difference between the legal requirements of the source text and the target text whilst others did not. This finding flagged up the need to analyse how EULAs were being translated, and to determine how research into the translation process could contribute to improving the way in which professional translators approached the translation of these documents. The aim of the LAW10n project was first to analyze all relevant aspects of the translation of software license agreements from English into Spanish and, secondly, to improve the quality of these translations by ensuring that the differences in the legal requirements of source and target texts are taken into account during the translation process, thereby best satisfying the communicative goal. The methodology used in the project was based on direct observation and interviews with translators and companies involved in translating EULAs using a validated questionnaire. Analysis of the data obtained provided a general description of the process of translation used and evidenced its shortcomings. As a result, proposals have been made for the improvement of the process of translating EULAs, including the creation of a web-based tool with translation resources. Future research contemplates expanding the data-gathering process and proposals for improvements in the translation of these documents in other languages and cultures.

Risk Involved in Cloud Data Storage and its Safety Measures

computing is a technology which will facilitate companies or organisation to host their services without worrying about IT infrastructure and other supporting services. Usually cloud computing services are delivered by a third party - Cloud Service Provider(CSP) provider who owns the infrastructure. Cloud computing offers an innovative business model for organizations to adopt IT services without upfront investment. Despite the potential gains achieved from the cloud computing, the organizations are slow in accepting it due to security issues and challenges associated with it. In this paper we focus on risks involved in data storage in cloud computing and solutions to minimize the risks. KeywordsCloud Service Provider; access control; data Server; Software License Agreement 1. INTRODUCTIONand managing a corporate network is a difficult task when the network grows. The increasing growth increases the need for extra resources. Storage is one such resource which grows high and increases the security issues and challenges associated with it. Most of the owners prefer to invest on larger hard drives while others on external storage devices (Compact Discs, Thump drive etc.). The cloud data storage is the alternate for these storage resources and facilitates with major needs of customer.

Online and Software Licensing Agreements

The present study examines individuals’ reported awareness of risk associated with online licensing agreements including whether it is safe to agree to them. Attributions and associated user behaviors are assessed. Results indicate that most users report that they do not read any of the online agreements presented to them and others report reading only portions of them. Despite this, users click “OK” to terms that they do not know, yet can do little about, if they want to use online applications and software. Other beliefs associated with accepting licensing agreements are described. Implications for people’s interactions with online licensing agreements and the perceived risks associated with them are provided.

Comparative Analysis of copyright assignment and licence formalities for Open Source Contributor Agreements

This article discusses formal requirements in open source software contributor copyright assignment and licensing agreements. Contributor agreements are contracts by which software developers transfer or license their work on behalf of an open source project. This is done for convenience and enforcement purposes, and usually takes the form of a formal contract. This work conducts a comparative analysis of how several jurisdicitons regard those agreements. We specifically look at the formal requirements across those countries to ascertain whether formalities are constitutive or probative. We then look at the consequences of the lack of formalities for the validity of those contributor agreements.

Intellectual Property and Shrinkwrap Licenses

Intellectual property -- right, wrong, or indifferent -- is well on its way to becoming irrelevant in the computer world. The reason is that the debate over the appropriate scope of intellectual property protection for computer software largely ignores the role of contract law in setting rights. Software vendors are attempting en masse to “opt out” of intellectual property law by drafting license provisions that compel their customers to adhere to more restrictive provisions than copyright (and even patent) law would require. These software license agreements are of two types: bargained agreements for custom software, and unbargained “shrinkwrap licenses” imposed on mass-market purchasers. As software has become a mass-market commodity, the shrinkwrap license has tended to predominate. Can software vendors really avoid the rules of intellectual property law entirely? Can they “pick and choose” among the rights and responsibilities of copyright law, adopting copyright when it suits their purposes and discarding it otherwise? By and large, the answer to these questions has depended on whether and under what conditions shrinkwrap licenses are enforceable. This article discusses the theoretical arguments in favor of and against enforcing such shrinkwrap license terms. After weighing these arguments, I conclude that shrinkwrap licenses should not be effective to alter the balance of rights created under federal law.

Set in Stone? Change and Innovation in Consumer Standard Form Contracts

This article studies the rate, direction, and determinants of change in consumer standard form contracting. We examine what changed between 2003 and 2010 in the terms of 264 mass-market consumer software license agreements. Thirty-nine percent of contracts materially changed at least one term, and some changed as many as fourteen terms. The average contract became more pro-seller as well as several hundred words longer. The increase in length is not due to the use of simpler language: contract readability has been constant: the average contract is as readable as an article in a scientific journal. Younger, larger, growing firms, and firms with in-house counsel were more likely to change existing terms and to introduce new terms to take advantage of technological and market developments. Contracts appeared to respond to litigation outcomes: Terms that were increasingly enforced by courts were more frequently used in contracts, and vice-versa. The results indicate that software license agreements are relatively dynamic and shaped by multiple factors over time. We discuss potential consumer protection implications as a result of the increased length and complexity of contracts over time.

Does Contract Disclosure Matter?

Disclosure has long been the preferred regulatory approach to prevent one-sided standard-form contract terms, but its efficacy is unclear. For disclosure to be effective, it must increase readership of contracts and, conditional on reading, affect decisions. I use clickstream data on software shoppers to test these two conditions in the online context. I find that the prominence of disclosure of a software license agreement has little effect on readership. Moreover, those who read the license are equally likely to purchase the product regardless of its one-sidedness. Mandatory online disclosure regimes thus seem unlikely to impose competitive pressure on sellers. (JEL: K12)

Valuation of Discount Options in Software License Agreements

Many companies increasingly rely on licensed standard software for system software and applications. In addition to the regulation of usage conditions, software licensing agreements increasingly include services, such as software upgrades and user training, as a part of the contract or these are optional for a fee, which can be made use of by the licensee during the term of the contract at a reduced price or as a free service. This benefit entitlement is called a discount option and must be valued during the selection and designing of a contract. This paper describes the basic valuation issues as well as some weaknesses of previous approaches, and subsequently presents a model which, on the basis of the real option theory, enables an assessment of the discount options using mathematical methods. As the value of discount options can in many cases only be estimated by using analytical methods under certain conditions, a practical solution method is explained on the basis of numeric backwards induction. The procedure for applying the model and the achieved advances in knowledge are illustrated with an example.

Bewertung von Discountoptionen bei Softwarelizenzverträgen

Many companies increasingly rely on licensed standard software for system software and applications. In addition to the regulation of usage conditions, software licensing agreements increasingly include services, such as software upgrades and user training, as a part of the contract or these are optional for a fee, which can be made use of by the licensee during the term of the contract at a reduced price or as a free service. This benefit entitlement is called a discount option and must be valued during the selection and designing of a contract. This paper describes the basic valuation issues as well as some weaknesses of previous approaches, and subsequently presents a model which, on the basis of the real option theory, enables an assessment of the discount options using mathematical methods. As the value of discount options can in many cases only be estimated by using analytical methods under certain conditions, a practical solution method is explained on the basis of numeric backwards induction. The procedure for applying the model and the achieved advances in knowledge are illustrated with an example.

Do software livre ao desafio informacional: direito e liberdade na sociedade rede

This paper aims to discuss, from the questioning presented by Yochai Benkler, the virtues of the intellectual property rights framework in light of the transformations introduced by the information technology revolution. It examines the impact of the emerging free culture on the dogmatic fundamentals of the legal order. In this particular, the concept of subjective right and of software license agreement are faced with the informatic challenge, aiming at determine the ability of these traditional legal institutions to provide an enough and adequate institutional space for the development of the information society.