Why the Copyright Law could leave software unprotected

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clpstaff &clp articles

For the first time China's Copyright Law acknowledges reverse engineering, which shows the government's changing attitude and courts' readiness to rule on a difficult area of the Law

Reverse engineering plays a vital role in the software industry. It is also an unavoidable topic when discussing IP law and, despite the increasing number of cases involving reverse engineering, the Chinese government has yet to release clear rules on the topic.

After more than a year of preparation, the National Copyright Administration published the draft Amendments to the PRC Copyright Law (中华人民共和国著作权法) for public consultation on March 31 2012. For the first time, the Amendments explicitly set out rules for reverse engineering of software programs.

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