A Components Approach to Intellectual Property in a Dynamic Technology Environment

This Article will address the protection of technological intellectual property in our current computer dominated business environment. The focus will be on copyright protection for computer programs. It should be noted that the concept of a components approach to computer program protection should be valid with patents, as well. Part II will discuss the federal statute dealing with copyright, Title 17. Part III will discuss two circuit court cases that have had a substantial impact on the treatment of copyright protection for computer programs. Part IV will discuss a components approach to protecting those intangible assets, suggesting that additional protection may be achieved at a component level