Re: [dvd-discuss] Bunner wins DeCSS trade secret appeal

[Noah silva <nsilva(at)atari-source.com>]

On Mon, 5 Nov 2001, Michael A Rolenz wrote:

> The problem with the concept that it's copyrighted as soon as it is 
> written down is that nobody know that. In physics if it can't be observed 
> it isn't "physical". Ditto for copyright.  It's also hard to argue that 
> the full range of copyright protection should be extended to private 
> scribblings. Now maybe a use for the UTSA would be to prosecute somebody 
> who steals a manuscript using it.

nobody argues that.. which is why I restrict my use of the term
"copyright" to mean "registered copyright".  Even if you _can_ prove you
wrote it down first, your legal rights are greatly diminished if it wasn't
a registered copyright.  The main purpose to register copyright is to
provide public proof that you are the author.  As soon as you publish
something with no copyright notice, it loses any copyright status.  I
assume the default copyright is to protect authors against theft before
they are finished with their works.

> As for published.....well lets see. It has been disseminated to a small 
> number of people and the DVD-discuss archive WAS being made available on 
> the Internet at OPENLAW.ORG. Granted it didn't get distribution in a 
> bookstore by a commeercial publisher but what more does it need. A book 
> run is about 2500 copies I think. How many hits does open law get daily? I 
> guess the question is that even though it's not deposited with the office, 
> it would seem to be published.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> "Peter D. Junger" <junger@samsara.law.cwru.edu>
> Sent by: owner-dvd-discuss@eon.law.harvard.edu
> 11/05/01 10:22 AM
> Please respond to dvd-discuss
> 
>  
>         To:     dvd-discuss@eon.law.harvard.edu
>         cc: 
>         Subject:        Re: [dvd-discuss] Bunner wins DeCSS trade secret appeal
> 
> 
> Noah silva writes:
> 
> : If you publish something, it doesn't qualify for trade secret status
> : then.  If you copyright something, you've just published it - anybody 
> can
> : walk into the copyright office and read it.  You can't apply for trade
> : secret protection on a book, etc., and it doesn't make sense to apply 
> for
> : trade secret on software itself. 
> 
> In the U.S. today if you write anything original it is copyrighted asw 
> soon as
> it is written down.  That does not mean  that it is published.  And it 
> certainly
> does not mean that it is available at the copyright office.
> 
> This message is copyrighted, it is arguable that it is 'published' as that 
> term is
> defined by the copyright law, but it most certainly is not available from 
> the
> copyright office. (Unless I decide to register it or deposit it with the 
> copyright
> office.)
> 
> --
> Peter D. Junger--Case Western Reserve University Law School--Cleveland, OH
>  EMAIL: junger@samsara.law.cwru.edu    URL:  http://samsara.law.cwru.edu 
>         NOTE: junger@pdj2-ra.f-remote.cwru.edu no longer exists
> 
> 
> 
>