USA articles related to:
Vernor v. Autodesk: product distribution and resale by licensees may infringe copyright
Davis Wright Tremaine LLP - USA -
September 27 2010
On Sept. 10, 2010, in Vernor v. Autodesk, Inc., No. 09-35969, slip op. at 13861 (9th Cir. 2010), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit held that a software reseller was liable for copyright infringement for purchasing used software from a third party and reselling it online.
Restricting distribution of copyrighted works: a Ninth Circuit hat trick
- Latham & Watkins LLP
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- USA
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- April 19 2011
Marketplaces such as eBay, vintage bookstores, and GameStop flourish at least partly through resale of secondhand copies of copyrighted works.
Resale of computer software on eBay does not infringe copyright
- McCarthy Tétrault LLP
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- USA
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- July 31 2008
An estimated 1.3 million people worldwide make some or all of their living selling goods on eBay, and Timothy Vernor is one of them.
Copyright first sale doctrine does not apply to resale of licensed software
- Edwards Wildman Palmer LLP
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- USA
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- September 28 2010
Generally, when someone purchases a CD containing software, or a DVD containing a video game, they believe they own the item.
Recent decision reaffirms software license restrictions
- Sullivan & Worcester LLP
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- USA
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- September 29 2010
For decades, software vendors have allowed customers to obtain and use their computer software programs under contracts known as End User License Agreements ("EULAs").
Ninth Circuit narrows applicability of the "first sale doctrine"
- Hogan Lovells
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- USA
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- October 14 2010
A recent decision issued by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (Ninth Circuit) strengthens copyright owners' ability to prevent the resale and further distribution of products subject to copyright protection through narrowing the applicability of the "first sale doctrine."
Ninth Circuit finds Autodesk software licensed, not sold
- Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP
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- USA
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- September 28 2010
On September 10, 2010, the Ninth Circuit issued its decision in Vernor v. Autodesk Inc., holding that, where software is transferred pursuant to a license agreement that restricts its use and distribution, the first sale and essential step defenses to copyright infringement do not apply.
Ninth Circuit affirms power of software license agreements to restrict resale
- Steptoe & Johnson LLP
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- USA
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- October 2 2010
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit held, in Timothy S. Vernor v. Autodesk, Inc., that an eBay vendor's resale of used AutoCAD software constituted copyright infringement because the party from which he originally purchased the software was merely a "licensee" rather than an "owner."
Autodesk decision gives software companies tool to prevent resale of licensed software by unauthorized third parties
- Morgan Lewis & Bockius LLP
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- USA
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- September 16 2010
On September 10, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit held in Vernor v. Autodesk that the first sale and the essential step doctrines do not apply to purchasers of a copy of software when the software was initially provided under a restrictive license.
Used DVD and video game resales one step closer to extinction
- Haynes and Boone LLP
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- USA
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- January 19 2011
Whether through online auctions or local resale stores, consumers have become used to turning unwanted or unused products into cash or credits for future purchases, as well as purchasing second-hand products at a discount.
Autodesk still owns your software
- Foley Hoag LLP
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- USA
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- October 21 2011
On October 3, 2011 the U.S. Supreme Court declined a request to grant certiorari in Vernor v. Autodesk.
Recent cases should make software licensors review their distribution methods and license terms (and they may even make us look at open source licenses in a different way)
- Andrews Kurth LLP
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- USA
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- July 21 2011
Three recent copyright cases from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Vernor v. Autodesk, Inc., 621 F.3d 1102 (9th Cir. 2010), UMG Recordings Inc. v. Augusto, 628 F.3d 1175 (9th Cir. 2010) and MDY Industries, LLC v. Blizzard Entertainment, Inc., 629 F.3d 928 (9th Cir. 2011), underscore how methods of distribution and license terms can be mutually reinforcing or, alternatively, mutually destructive.
Ninth Circuit rules on license versus sale of software
- Proskauer Rose LLP
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- USA
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- September 24 2010
The Register of Copyrights may have concluded that precedents defining the difference between a license and a sale of software are conflicting, but a panel of the Ninth Circuit had no difficulty in resolving the issue in its recent opinion Vernor v. Autodesk, Inc., 2010 U.S. App. LEXIS (9th Cir. Sept. 10, 2010).
Recent federal cases impact end user software license agreements
- Hogan Lovells
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- USA
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- September 9 2008
Two recent federal district court decisions from the 9th Circuit may impact significantly the way in which software manufacturers distribute their copyrighted software.
Update: Blizzard owns your software
- Foley Hoag LLP
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- USA
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- January 10 2011
As expected, the Ninth Circuit has declared link that Blizzard's World of Warcraft (WoW) software licensees are just that -- licensees, and not owners -- because the WoW Terms of Use sufficiently restrict the transfer and use of the WoW software.
Supreme Court inaction a win for software companies
- Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP
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- USA
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- October 5 2011
The Supreme Court has validated the ability of software developers to prevent customers from owning the copy of software they acquire.
Ninth Circuit decides that gamers' use of 'bots' is unlikely to constitute copyright infringement, but creator of bot still on hook for circumventing protections
- Reed Smith LLP
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- USA
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- December 23 2010
On December 14, 2010, the Ninth Circuit continued its clarification of copyright law as it relates to the use of software.
Second-hand software ok in the EU
- Scott & Scott LLP
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- European Union, USA
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- October 22 2012
A flurry of attention surrounded the recent legal saga of Timothy Vernor and his protracted fight against Autodesk to re-sell software via eBay.
Washington court affirms ability to sell software on eBay
- Winston & Strawn LLP
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- USA
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- December 18 2009
A Washington court recently held that an individual who resold packages of software did not commit copyright infringement under the "first-sale doctrine," which allows the owner of a copyrighted work to resell that copy.
Ninth Circuit rules that promotional CDs are owned by recipient, may be sold
- Wiley Rein LLP
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- USA
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- January 12 2011
In a ruling that could have significant implications for companies that distribute copyrighted merchandise for promotional purposes, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has ruled that compact discs distributed to music critics and DJs for promotional purposes only are owned by the recipient and may be resold or otherwise transferred without the copyright owner's consent pursuant to the "first sale" doctrine of the Copyright Act and the Unordered Merchandise Statute.
Transfer of packaged software was a license, not a sale, under copyright first sale doctrine
- Proskauer Rose LLP
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- USA
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- January 11 2011
A transaction involving the transfer of packaged software from a developer to a user was a license, not a sale, under the copyright first sale doctrine, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled.
Register of copyrights says "who knows?" on ownership of computer program copies
- Proskauer Rose LLP
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- USA
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- August 5 2010
Who owns the firmware on a smartphone, the device manufacturer or the purchaser?
Ninth Circuit rules on license conditions versus contract covenants in dispute over World of Warcraft bots - MDY v. Blizzard, part I
- Proskauer Rose LLP
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- USA
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- January 3 2011
Playing World of Warcraft, the world's most popular massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG), can be, well, a drag.
Apple v. Psystar underscores the strength of software license agreements and the limits of the copyright misuse defense
- Sullivan & Worcester LLP
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- USA
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- October 20 2011
A recent decision by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals underscores the importance of distributing software under a carefully drafted software license agreement (“SLA”).
US court rules non-transferable software "can be resold"
- Shepherd & Wedderburn LLP
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- United Kingdom, USA
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- October 29 2009
Whether you are a computer software developer, user or are buying or selling software licences as part of a wider corporate transaction it may be worth taking note of a recent ruling by a US Court that reaches an interesting conclusion on the nature of computer software ownership.
Judge allows sales of “used” MP3 files to continue
- Scott & Scott LLP
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- USA
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- February 22 2012
On February 6, 2012, a judge for the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York ruled that ReDigi an upstart, online marketplace for “used” MP3 files can continue operating pending the outcome of copyright-infringement litigation initiated by Capitol Records.
Be wary of audit tools promoted by software auditors
- Scott & Scott LLP
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- USA
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- July 18 2012
Most companies with more than a handful of computers in their IT environments rely on the results of network-inventory tools to gather the deployment data needed for accurate software audits.
The copyright misuse defense & Apple's software license agreements
- Weintraub Genshlea Chediak Law Corporation
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- USA
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- October 7 2011
The affirmative defense of copyright misuse is a court-created affirmative defense to copyright infringement which flows from a similar defense in patent litigation.
eBay reseller denied protections of first sale doctrine
- Arent Fox LLP
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- USA
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- February 28 2012
The US District Court for the Northern District of California recently issued a decision in Adobe Systems Inc. v. Hoops Enterprise LLC, denying an eBay reseller of copyrighted works the protections of the first sale doctrine.
Court refuses to extend trade-mark protection to file extensions
- McCarthy Tétrault LLP
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- Canada, USA
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- May 13 2010
In Autodesk, Inc. v. Dassault Systemès Solidworks Corporation, the US District Court for the Northern District of California recently considered whether computer file extensions are entitled to trade-mark protection.
Use of 'bots' in game play questionable under copyright law
- Reed Smith LLP
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- USA
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- January 20 2011
On December 14 2010 the Ninth Circuit continued its clarification of copyright law as it relates to the use of software. In MDY Industries, LLC v Blizzard Entertainment, Inc the court ruled that although gamers' use of 'bots' to manipulate game play violated the user licence in the software, the violation was not so tied to copyright as to destroy the user licence and turn the RAM copies on their computers into infringements.
Kirtsaeng decision decides application of first sale doctrine to non-United States sales
- Baker & McKenzie
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- USA
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- March 26 2013
On March 19, the U.S. Supreme Court held that the U.S. Copyright Act's first sale doctrine applies also to copies of copyrighted works that are
The interplay between digital media and the first sale doctrine
- Holland & Knight LLP
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- European Union, USA
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- April 3 2013
The first sale doctrine allows owners of copies of copyrighted works (e.g. used books, CDs, DVDs) to resell their copies without restriction, and it
Who owns software?
- Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP
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- USA
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- September 14 2010
In a very significant decision, the 9th circuit Court of Appeals ruled that software developers can legally prevent customers from owning the copies of software that they pay for.
UMG v. Augusto: allowing the sale of promotional CDs under the first sale doctrine could affect much more than the music industry
- Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP
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- USA
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- July 17 2008
In a decision that could have far-reaching implications for technology licenses of all types, the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California recently held that the first sale doctrine permits a recipient of promotional CDs to sell them online without violating the license pursuant to which the CDs were distributed and without being liable for copyright infringement.
If you buy a book, can you re-sell It? Kirtsaeng v. Wiley & Sons
- Fennemore Craig
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- USA
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- February 27 2013
The U.S. Supreme Court decision in Kirtsaeng v. Wiley & Sons will impact the right to resell copyrighted goods and the pricing policies of copyright
U.S. Supreme Court makes price differentiation between markets more difficult for copyright owners
- Neal Gerber & Eisenberg LLP
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- USA
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- March 22 2013
On March 19th, the Supreme Court eliminated a tool that copyright owners have considered important to stopping distributors and retailers from