Digital Rights Management

Copyrights are the intellectual property rights most substantially affected by the rise of the Internet and digital media platforms. Virtually all content presented through the Internet and other digital media platforms is subject to copyright rules. Website content, social media posts and software apps are only a few examples of widely used digital materials that are within the scope of copyright law. Digital media enables users to execute the key rights of copyright owners: duplication, distribution, public presentation and modification of protected works easily and quickly. Thus, the online digital environment substantially complicates copyright management efforts.

Consider for example, computer code. Once fixed in a tangible form, computer programs are eligible for copyright protection. If a software developer incorporates sections of code created by another developer into his or her new program, copyright infringement has occurred. The developer of the section of code incorporated into the new program can claim infringement by the developer of the new program. Copyright protected content can be easily accessed, duplicated, absorbed, and modified in today’s digital environment, and this setting creates difficult and continuing copyright management challenges.