I found below text in a php script software's licence file: Xxxx Licence Agreement Xxxx ('the Software') is a copyrighted work of authorship and is also protected under applicable database laws. What is the applicable database laws? Thanks
I actually haven't heard of that term being used before. Is the full license online somewhere and can you send me a link to it? Here is a link that might help (not sure as I didn't read the entire thing): http://www.praxagora.com/andyo/professional/collection_law.html -- Nathan Enns
Hi Nathan Enns, thanks for the link, and here is the license url: http://www.amember.com/p/Main/License
Your welcome, hope that helps. Thanks for sending me the licenses URL. It looks like database law is a type of intellectual property law that protects the rights of people who have gathered certain types of information. For example, if you collected a bunch of data about curing Alzheimer disease the information might be protected under database law. The information I found doesn't seem to be very current and I have no idea what types of databases would be considered "applicable". The only other semi-useful link I found was from 1997 and can be found at: http://news.com.com/Database+laws+threaten+research/2100-1023_3-278751.html It doesn't seem like that clause would affect your use of the program unless you are in some way using information gathered by the owner. This assumes that I am anywhere close to understanding the law correctly based on an old cnet article and a document found on a random website with unknown credibility. Sorry I couldn't help more, but I do hope you know a little more about it now than you did before I replied... -- Nathan Enns
Databases are protected under copyright laws in the US as compilations. I'm not sure if that would apply here though. Without seeing their database I don't know what kind of data is in there to begin with. If they do have any data in the database (before you start adding your members) then essentially you cannot copy that data and/or sell it (as a whole or substantial part). This is somewhat of a work around of the fact that most databases contain merely facts. Facts cannot be copyrighted. If you were to look at the MLB database and pull out a single player's stats there is nothing that MLB could do to you (assuming you didn't hack in to get it). You could publish those stats without any problem. If you took and published their entire database then they could come after you. If you had collected the same set of facts independently and made your own database, they couldn't do anything about it. It is possible, though not very likely, that there could be a patent on the database design. In that case, you would not be allowed to share the databse structure.