Copyright on Software if the publisher has gone bust?

[Mr_T]

Copyright on Software if the publisher has gone bust does it still exist? The software in question is 3Dme now.

I am led to believe that the publisher has gone bust does that mean we can now use the single licence we bought as a site licence?

 

I can seem to find anything on the net that referances this subject.

 

Also how long does copyright for software apply for in music it is 50 years?

[StewartKnight]

I thought that the copyright on music was 75 years after the singer has died

[Disease]

Cant be 75 years after the singer has dies as a few years ago the copyright ran out on Elvis Presley songs.

[Geoff]

If the company has gone bankrupt then any assets would of been sold by the liquidators to pay off creditors. Therefore it's very likely that someone somewhere will own the copyright on the software.

 

In the case of a work of corporate authorship the copyright term is 95 years from the date of first publication or 120 years from the date of creation, whichever expires first.

[Mr_T]

If the company has gone bankrupt then any assets would of been sold by the liquidators to pay off creditors. Therefore it's very likely that someone somewhere will own the copyright on the software.

 

In the case of a work of corporate authorship the copyright term is 95 years from the date of first publication or 120 years from the date of creation, whichever expires first.

 

Thanks Guy's that's just what I was after :-)

[GL_Guy]

I thought that the copyright on music was 75 years after the singer has died

 

It's 75 years for the songwriter - 50 years for the singer

[Andie]

So, what if you need to purchase additional licences to run on more machines or to upgrade to a site licence, but the company has gone bust? Anyone know how to set about tracing the owner of copyright???

[Geoff]

You will have to look at the court records of proceedings from when the company went bankrupt. These will list all the assets and how they were dealt with. The court records are a matter of public record so they are fairly easy to get hold of.

[Andie]

Mmmm... Both websites I have found so far with court records on want to charge me for a search.

[mjs_mjs]

you may need to file a Freedom Of Information request. If u'r in an LA school try contacting the LA for assistance as they may know quicker ways of getting things.

[teejay]

Companies House records search should give you details of who the administrators are, if you contact them they should be able to tell you.

[elsiegee40]

you may need to file a Freedom Of Information request. If u'r in an LA school try contacting the LA for assistance as they may know quicker ways of getting things.

 

FOI only applies to government deparments and public authorities such as schools. It does not apply to companies generally, independent schools or old style academies

[powdarrmonkey]

This thread died three years ago.