The Copyright Act: Difference between revisions
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(New page: ==The Copyright Act== Persons who unlawfully copy and distribute software or other material using computers may be subject to punishment for criminal copyright infringement.FN57 The c...) |
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==The Copyright Act== | ==The Copyright Act== | ||
Persons who unlawfully copy and distribute software or other material using computers may be subject to punishment for criminal copyright infringement.[[FN57]] The criminal copyright infringement statute has three elements: | Persons who unlawfully copy and distribute software or other material using computers may be subject to punishment for criminal copyright infringement.[[FN57]] The criminal copyright infringement statute has three elements: | ||
# infringement of a copyright; | |||
# done willfully; and | |||
# for commercial advantage or private financial gain, or by reproducing or distributing (within any 180-day period) one or more copies or phonorecords of one or more copyrighted works with a total retail value of more than $1,000.[[FN58]] | |||
Mere unauthorized copying of computer software may satisfy the first element. To establish the first element of copyright infringement, the prosecution must prove the existence of a valid copyright, and that the defendant copied original elements of the copyrighted work.[[FN59]] | |||
Latest revision as of 11:04, 18 February 2009
The Copyright Act
Persons who unlawfully copy and distribute software or other material using computers may be subject to punishment for criminal copyright infringement.FN57 The criminal copyright infringement statute has three elements:
- infringement of a copyright;
- done willfully; and
- for commercial advantage or private financial gain, or by reproducing or distributing (within any 180-day period) one or more copies or phonorecords of one or more copyrighted works with a total retail value of more than $1,000.FN58
Mere unauthorized copying of computer software may satisfy the first element. To establish the first element of copyright infringement, the prosecution must prove the existence of a valid copyright, and that the defendant copied original elements of the copyrighted work.FN59