Compliance and liability of IPR

Intellectual Property ebbits is likely to produce or use may intangible assets, such
as computer programmes, literary or artistic works (e.g., images or literary
descriptions), databases, valuable raw data, algorithms, industrial recipes etc.,.
The Intellectual Property legal framework is thus crucial for ebbits in order to, on
the one hand, secure its own investment and on the other, to avoid the
infringement of Intellectual Property of others. As regards protection of valuable
intangible assets generated by an ebbits system, one needs to consider
traditional IP protection, such as patents and copyright. Additionally, the legal
framework for the protection of business confidential information and trade
secrets is important. Intellectual Property rights are regulated at the international
and national levels. The European Union (EU) has adopted a number of
legislative acts relating to the IP. European law complies with the obligations
imposed by international law, but at the same time harmonises IPR further and
often provides for a higher standard of protection then international conventions,
in particular in the field of copyright. In the area of copyright protection,
harmonisation at EU level is provided mostly by Council Directive 2001/29/EC of
22 May 2001 on the harmonisation of certain aspects of copyright and related
rights in the information society (Information Society Directive), Directive
06/96/EC on the legal protection of databases (Database Directive), and Directive
2009/24/EC on the Legal Protection of Computer Programs (Computer
Programmes Directive). Copyright grants an exclusive right to control
reproduction and communication to the public of literary and artistic works, as
far as they are original and fixed in some material form. In the context of ebbits,
the copyright may provide protection in respect of ebbits software, structure of
database(s), other literary works (such as ebbits website or promotional
material). No formalities are required for copyright protection. Copyright lasts for
the limited period of time (in the EU, 70 years after the death of the author or
from the date of first publication). In the area of patent protection, currently
there is no binding EU law on patents. Therefore the legal framework is
comprised of regulation arising from both national and international laws (the
most relevant act being the Council of Europe European Patent Convention of
1973). The patent will protect any invention that has a technical character,
providing that it is new, that it involves an inventive step and is susceptible of
industrial application. The patent protection lasts for a limited period of time (20
years under the European Patent Convention). It requires formal filling with
competent authorities. Filing implies disclosure of information regarding the
invention in question, ebbits D3.8 Legal, IPR and liability issues Document
version: 1.0 Page 7 of 77 Submission date: 16 December 2013 and may involve
significant costs. Certain subject matters are excluded form patent protection. In
Europe (under European Patent Convention) the most significant exclusions form
patentability in the context of ebbits relates to scientific theories, mathematical
methods, business methods, and ordinary computer programmes. The
patentability of computer-related inventions is controversial. The patent
application requires formal filling. As far as data and knowledge ownership are
concerned, patents and copyright do not provide for ownership of data or
knowledge. Hence, neither patents not copyright will protect algorithms,
mathematical methods, know-how, industrial recipes, or valuable raw data. Such

assets may constitute confidential information and trade secrets. Given the very
limited harmonisation of laws on business confidential information and trade
secrets on the international level, and awaiting adoption of EU laws in the field,
the protection of the business confidential information and trade secrets is
provided by the national law of each Member State. The legal protection of trade
secrets differs from intellectual property protection. In particular, the former does
not create an exclusive right. This means that, for instance, the trade secret
cannot be enforced against a third party who has obtained the information
constituting the trade secret in good faith. As per IP liability, the ebbits platform
may use third parties data, information and knowledge, as well as copyrighted
works or inventions protected by IP. In order to avoid the potential liability for
infringement, ebbits should secure the licence from the copyright or patent
holder. ebbits may also be under an obligation to protect the trade secrets or
confidential information of third parties. ebbits can and should aim to preserve
the confidentiality and secrecy of the information it handles by preventing its
accidental disclosure. ebbits should also be able to control who gains access to
information. ebbits should be careful in information sharing, e.g., by providing
information only on a need-to-know basis, by subjecting it to scrutiny in terms of
confidentiality requirements and by applying technological measures protecting
such information. Digital Rights Management is used in relation to technological
systems that define, manage and protect the rights of access to and use of
digital content (e.g. the music or audio file, text and ebooks, etc.). DRM defines
how and by whom such content may be used, thus implementing the copyright
licenses or ensuring the security and confidentiality of data. In the context of
ebbits, DRM that is used to protect copyrighted material, such as software, enjoy
legal protection under Copyright law. DRM might also be used to manage
confidential information and to ensure data security. In these contexts, DRM
systems may ensure protection of trade secrets, but also enable that data
processing complies with privacy and on data protection laws. Finally, the use of
DRM may pose some privacy concerns when its leads to collecting or processing
of personal data. In such cases it is advisable ebbits is equipped with a DRM
protection system with privacy enhancing technologies (PETs)