IEEE Power Electronics Magazine - June 2019 - 60

Patent Reviews

by Art MacCord

Supreme Court Ruling Encourages
Early Filing of Applications to
Register Copyrights

any electronics inventions
have associated software
that adds considerable
value to the invention. Efforts to
patent software often encounter difficulties because the rules in the
patent field deny protection for
abstract ideas. So, many software
creators rely on copyright for a significant form of protection against
copying. Indeed, the copyright of
original software is almost always
available, even when patents are
not. Copyrights are particularly useful against exact copies, such as
counterfeit software.
Copyrights may also be useful
for protecting other writings associated with electronics businesses,
such as user manuals, technical
drawings, data sheets, white pa pers, brochures, v ideos, animations, and advertising copy. Mask
works used in making semiconductor chips are also protected by the
U.S. Copyright Office; these are discussed later.
A r e ce nt r u l i n g by t he U. S .
Supreme Court provides a strong
incentive for copyright owners to
promptly register their copyright
claim. Registration is normally voluntary, and copyright protection
exists from the moment the work is
created. However, since 1976, the
U.S. law has stated that copyright
Digital Object Identifier 10.1109/MPEL.2019.2910654
Date of publication: 18 June 2019

IEEE POWER ELECTRONICS MAGAZINE

Another incentive to early regisowners cannot have their day in
tration is provided by the statute
court until the copyright has been
itself. The money recoverable by a
registered. The courts have taken
copyright owner from an infringer is
differing positions as to when the
enhanced if the copyright registraregistration has been made. Some
tion is filed within three months of
courts have held that the registration
the first publication
has not been made
of the work or before
until the U.S. Copythe i n f r i ngement
right Office is sues
A recent ruling by the
begins. Waiting to
t h e r e g i s t r a tion,
U.S. Supreme Court
file for registration
while some courts
provides a strong
until the infringehave held that it has
ment begins has a
been made as soon as
incentive for copyright
twofold n e g a t i v e
applicants have filed
owners to promptly
effect: 1) you cannot
their applicat i o n .
register their
even sue until the
This timing difference
copyright claim.
U.S. Copyright Office
can have a significant
has completed its
business impact on
paperwork, and 2)
a p er s o n w h o s e
the amount that is recoverable is
copyright is being infringed because
diminished by the delay.
it takes the U.S. Copyright Office
Waiting until the infringement
roughly seven months to register
occurs to file the paperwork with the
an application. The U.S. Supreme
U.S. Copyright Office may introduce
Court's ruling concludes that the
unacceptable delays. Most cases setregistration has not been made until
tle, but the infringer's incentive to
the U.S. Copyright Office issues
settle usually requires a copyright
the registration.
owner to establish there is a credible
Thus, when an infringement aristhreat that the infringer will be
es, the copyright owner will be able
enjoined or have to pay substantial
to take prompt legal action against
damages. Both threats are diminthe infringer, and perhaps seek a preished by delaying the copyright filing
liminary injunction or temporary
until the infringement starts.
restraining order, only if the U.S.
Mask works can also be protectCopyright Office has registered the
ed using a system that is similar to
copyright. The market positions of
copy r ig ht reg i st r at ion. T he law
the copyright owner and infringer
defines a mask work as a series of
can change considerably during a
r e l a t e d i m a ge s , h owe v e r f i xe d
wait of seven months for a registraor encoded:
tion to be processed.

z June 2019

IEEE Power Electronics Magazine - June 2019

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