What is intellectual property ?
A simple legal definition of intellectual property:"
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY - Property that can be protected under federal law, including copyrightable works, ideas, discoveries, and inventions. Such property would include novels, sound recordings, a new type of mousetrap, or a cure for a disease."
The 'Lectric Law Library Legal Lexicon', intellectual property, retrieved from the World Wide Web, August 5, 2002, http://www.lectlaw.com/def/i051.htm
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What are the laws that I need to know about intellectual property ?
Copyright laws, the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, and the concept of "fair use" are important areas of intellectual property for educators. These areas are covered in Copyright Basics for Educators.
How does the Internet affect intellectual property ?
There is a wealth of information available on the Internet that is protected by law. With the click of a mouse text, images, video, and sound files can be easily copied and downloaded. The ease of reproducing information via digital technology and the Internet has caused concern for the creators and users of this information. It is not unusual to see warnings posted on Web sites and reminders that information from the site may not be copied.
The digital age has seen two controversial views on intellectual properties emerge. At one extreme of the issue are people who believe that intellectual property should be unprotected and unrestricted, while those at the other end feel that the government needs to pass and enforce laws to protect intellectual property. The key issue here is about producer rights and user rights; a balance between public and private interests.
What are the main issues and questions ?
The digital age has seen two controversial views on intellectual property emerge. At one extreme of the issue are people who believe that intellectual property should be unprotected and unrestricted, while those at the other end feel that the government needs to pass and enforce laws to protect intellectual property. The key issue here is about producer rights and user rights; a balance between public and private interests.
