Hi everyone,
I was wondering about the right to reverse engineer in the digital context and came across the following paper and blog entry via the links provided.
I find the paper helpful in getting to know a bit more about the background of reverse engineering in IP. It is claimed that reverse engineering is “one of the primary reasons the video game industry has been so successful in innovation and rapid development.” In a nutshell, the author seems to be very supportive of clearer legislation to protect the right to reverse engineer in the digital context. It is argued “As technological advancements continue to outpace in-kind legislative adjustments, the need becomes more pressing to preserve the legal space second-comers require to access and to build upon existing creative works to create new ones.”
http://scholarship.law.marquette.edu/iplr/vol17/iss1/1
Then I came across this blog entry which posted similar questions I had in mind. It seems that even in the limited circumstances where reverse engineering is allowed under the fair use doctrine or the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (in the U.S.), the right to reverse engineer can be readily prohibited in contracts under the terms of use or end user licence agreements.
https://www.internetlawyer-blog.com/reverse-engineering-fair-use-rights/
So I cannot but wonder whether in reality there still exists any protection for the right to reverse engineer in the digital context when contract terms prohibit it?
Communications Law
One thing I love about intellectual property law is that it introduces me to so many new concepts that I have never heard of before, like reverse engineering. Thanks for sharing this — so interesting!
I wonder how the American and Canadian landscapes would compare to the EU, where reverse engineering is dictated by the Computer Programs Directive. The following article is a useful (yet dated) primer on that legislative scheme: https://scholarship.law.duke.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1307&context=djcil.