Software maker loses in copyright ruling

Article Abstract:

A federal judge has ruled that Accolade Inc may have violated the copyright of Sega Enterprises Ltd when Accolade used reverse engineering to take apart a Sega console to see how it worked. Accolade may also have violated the Sega copyright when it copied a piece of code. Accolade was designing a video game to be compatible with Sega's Genesis consoles. Sega has won a preliminary injunction against Accolade to stop it from disassembling any more of the Sega consoles. The ruling surprised and upset the software industry, since reverse engineering is a widely popular way to develop compatible products. The judge ruled that Accolade could have used the more expensive and time-consuming procedure called 'peeling a chip', but that copyright law prohibited taking the consoles apart. The judgement is viewed as a further restriction on access to hardware, a trend that alarms most software makers.

Computer software industry, Software industry, Cases, Laws, regulations and rules, Software engineering, Reverse engineering, Compatibility (Computers), Accolade Inc., Compatible Software

---

For parents: here's educational software that gets high marks

Article Abstract:

Knowledge Adventure Inc's Interactive books are educational data bases that range in price from $50 to $60. The MS-DOS-based databases allow young readers to select data presented on-screen to move to other areas of interest. Knowledge Adventure is a general informational package, and the series also includes Sports Adventure and Science Adventure. More titles are planned for release. Kid Works 2 is a $35 educational software package from Davidson & Associates Inc that allows children to create and illustrate original stories on Apple Macintosh microcomputers. An MS-DOS version of Kid Works 2 is planned for release. Grandma and Me is an educational database from Broderbund Software Inc. The package is a story that is read in either Spanish or English by the computer using a human voice. Additionally, the illustrations become animated when selected by a mouse.

Evaluation, Product/Service Evaluation, Product information, Educational software, Databases, Database, Broderbund Software Inc., Knowledge Adventure Inc., Davidson and Associates Inc. (Torrance, California), Knowledge Adventure (Educational software), Data Bases, Science Adventure (Data base), Just Grandma and Me (Children's educational software), Kid Works 2.0 (Children's educational software)

---

Hughes Aircraft gets copyright on program

Article Abstract:

Hughes Aircraft Co, which is a unit of General Motors Corp, obtains a copyright on a program that operates on 'neural networks.' Specifically, Hughes's program recognizes certain sonar images, so that it might be used to distingush one kind of underwater object from another. It could, for example, tell the difference between a submarine and a whale. Hughes's copyright is believed to be one of the first copyrights covering a neural network program.

Aircraft, Computer networks, Software, Neural networks, Copyrights, Aerospace industry, Patents, Hughes Aircraft Co., Patent/Copyright Issue, Neural Network

Similar abstracts:

• Abstracts: Strategy: an introduction. Managerial activity theory and the education of general managers. Marketing strategy in corporate context
• Abstracts: Human resource management in international joint ventures in China. Management by expectations (MBE): the power of positive prophecy
• Abstracts: Foreign direct investment in China: a consideration of some strategic options. Marketing in China
• Abstracts: Apple Computer posts an 18 percent drop in profit for its fiscal fourth quarter
• Abstracts: Stock answer; buying and trading securities on the Web could revolutionize the relationship between investors and brokerage firms

This website is not affiliated with document authors or copyright owners. This page is provided for informational purposes only. Unintentional errors are possible.