Umowy o udostępnienie programów komputerowych w wybranych systemach prawnych
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Date
1990
Authors
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Publisher
Wydział Prawa i Administracji UAM
Title alternative
Contracts for the use of computer programmes in selected legal system
Abstract
The article discusses the contracts for the use of computer programmes.
The author presents basic forms of contracts and typical elements of their contents.
The ba is of her presentation are the legal systems of the USA, Great Britain and
the Federal Republic of Germany.
In the first part of her article, the author presents the object and types of
contracts (custom software contracts, package software contracts, mass marketed
software contracts, especially shrink-wrap agreements). A basic contractual form
of offering software is licence agreement. The author pays special attention to form
contracts developed by the As ociation of Data Processing Service Organization.
In the second part of her article the author discursses the legal status of
computer programmes. In recent years, a prevailing form of legal protection is
copyright law, accompanied by patent law and know-how protection within the
trade secret law. The author also pre ents the position of Polish legal doctrine on
the protection of computer programmes and analyses the premises of the draft of
the Poli h copyright law, which is to include computer programmes under its
protection. The third part of the article contains the analysis of typical elements of the
contracts for the use of computer programmes (the scope of the licence, the
character of the licence, intellectual property rights, licencee's rights to copying,
alterations, the access to source code, the use of improved programmes, protection
of secrecy, licence fees, legal and technical guarantees for the licensor, liability and
the causes and consequences of expiration of a contract). Special attention is paid
to the stipulations which may be of restrictive character for the buyer, limiting
his or her rights to use the programme (e.g. no access to source code, the interdiction
to make copies, especially back-up copies, the interdiction to do reverse
engineering, etc.). Next, the author analyses a special form of distribution of mass
marketed software (shrink-wrap licence). The admissibility of such contracts has
recently been questioned, for they limit excessively the rights of the buyer
protected by copyright law and they are an example of an abuse of economic
power by the seller.
The last part of the article contains the remarks on the possibilities of
applying foreign solutions in Polish software trade (domestic and international).
In this context the author points to the need of seeking the solutions which could
best protect the interests of Polish software importers.
Description
Sponsor
Digitalizacja i deponowanie archiwalnych zeszytów RPEiS sfinansowane przez MNiSW w ramach realizacji umowy nr 541/P-DUN/2016
Keywords
Citation
Ruch Prawniczy, Ekonomiczny i Socjologiczny, 52, 1990, z. 3-4, s. 33-52