Copyright law - scope of protection of non-literal elements of computer programs - Second Circuit applies an "abstraction-filtration-comparison" test
Article Abstract:
The Second Circuit in Computer Associates International Inc v Altai Inc applied the merger doctrine to limit copyrightability of a computer program's nonliteral elements. The merger doctrine was developed to filter out standard elements as a test for protecting literary works, which have greater scope for creativity than computer programs. For computer programs, the merger doctrine should be applied only to elements which constitute the 'only and essential means' for performing some task, as suggested by the National Commission on New Technological Uses of Copyrighted Works.
Publication Name: Harvard Law Review
Subject: Law
ISSN: 0017-811X
Year: 1992
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Constitutional law -- Tenth Amendment -- Fourth Circuit holds that Driver's Privacy Protection Act violates Tenth Amendment
Article Abstract:
The US Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit, in Condon v. Reno, ruled that the Driver's Privacy Protection Act of 1994 (DPPA) infringed on the states' Tenth Amendment sovereignty rights. DPPA forbid state motor vehicle departments from revealing information obtained about drivers. The Court ruled that Congress exceeded its powers under the Commerce Clause. A deeper analysis would have sustained DPPA as a constitutional regulation of voluntary state activity that respected federalism.
Publication Name: Harvard Law Review
Subject: Law
ISSN: 0017-811X
Year: 1999
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Copyright law - District Court holds that website's posting of and linking to code that decrypts DVD copyright protection technology violates Digital Millennium Copyright Act
Article Abstract:
The author discusses the US District Court for the Southern District of New York's decision in Universal City Studios, Inc. v. Reimerdes, in which the court ruled that the posting and linking of a code for decrypting DVD copyrighted technology violates the Digital Millennium Copyright Act.
Publication Name: Harvard Law Review
Subject: Law
ISSN: 0017-811X
Year: 2001
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