user interface copyright
There have been several attempts, mostly by big US software companies, to
enforce patents and copyright on user interfaces. Such legal action aims to
restrict the use of certain command languages or graphical user interfaces to
products from one software supplier. This is undesirable because it either
forces users to buy software from the company whose interface they have learned
or to learn more than one interface. An analogy is often drawn with the user
interface of a car - the arrangement of pedals and steering wheel etc. If each
car manufacturer was forced to use a different interface this would be very bad
for car users.
Following a non-jury trial, which began in early January 1987, a federal judge
ruled on 1990-06-28 that keyboard commands and on-screen images produced by
Lotus Development Corporation's popular 1-2-3 spreadsheet are protected by
copyright. Paperback Software International and subcontractor Stephenson
Software Ltd. who lost the case, argued that the copyright applies only to the
inner workings of the software. US District Judge Robert Keeton wrote that "The
user interface of 1-2-3 is its most unique element and is the aspect that has
made 1-2-3 so popular. That defendants went to such trouble to copy that element
is a testament to its substantiality". Defence attorneys had argued that the
Lotus commands represented "instructions for a machine rather than the
expression of an idea".
Soon after this decision, on 1990-07-02, Lotus sued Borland International and
the Santa Cruz Operation for producing spreadsheets (Quattro, Quattro Pro and
SCO Professional) whose interfaces could be configured to look like 1-2-3's.
(1994-11-16)
Nearby terms:
user id « user identifier « user interface « user
interface copyright » User Interface Language »
user name » User Network Interface
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