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Software Licensing Agreements

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Free Essay Submitted by bignerds on 06/28/2008 08:11 PM

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  • Category: Technology
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Software Licensing Agreements

Software license agreements emerged as the most popular means of protection of proprietary rights in computer software. They coexist with other forms of intellectual property rights as patent and copyright. Software license agreements serve several functions in transactions involving the transfer of computer technology. One of the most important legal functions is the protection of the proprietary rights of the licenser in the transferred software.(SPA) Other functions include controlling the revenue generated by licensed software and determining the rights and responsibilities of the parties regarding the performance of the licensed technology. Issue related to these functions include the applicability of Article 2 of the Uniform Commercial Code, including offer and disclaimer of warranties, determining the appropriate types of licenses to utilize, such as single users C.P.U. licenses, site enterprise licenses and network concurrent licenses.(SPA)
In 1993 worldwide illegal copying of domestic and international software cost $12.5 billion to the software industry, with a loss of $2.2 billion in the United States alone. Estimates show that over 40 percent of U.S. software company revenues are generated overseas, yet nearly 85 percent of the software industry's piracy losses occurred outside of the United States borders.(Bueger, 1994) The Software Publishers Association indicated that approximately 35 percent of the business software in the United States was obtained illegally, which 30 percent of the piracy occurs in corporate settings. In a corporate setting or business, every computer must have its own set of original software and the appropriate number of manuals.(BSA) It is illegal for a corporation or businesses to purchase a single set of original software and then load that software onto more than one computer, or lend, copy or distribute software for any reason without the prior written consent of the software manufacturer. Many software...

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