Re: Assignment of Copyright in Cyberspace

On Wed, 8 Apr 1998, Robert Cumbow <cumbr[_at_]perkinscoie.com> wrote:
>
> The Merc <themerc[_at_]gte.net> responded:
> >
> > And a reasonable person could not construe that an e-mail message
> > (held numerous times to bind a contract AS A WRITING) cannot
> > constitute a "writing" pursuant to the law? The assignment/transfer
> > could be written on the back of a cocktail napkin, why not an e-mail?
>
> It isn't the "writing" part that's a problem... it's the "signed"
> part.

It's also the "conveyance" part. In the hypo we were given, the original maintainer gave another person the right to take over maintaining the work. The language was "I can't be bothered to update the pages anymore but I don't care if you want to go ahead."

That's not a conveyance, that's a license.

--
Terry Carroll       |  "I know the Great Lakes.  I've traveled the 
Santa Clara, CA     |  Great Lakes.  And Lake Champlain is not one of
carroll[_at_]tjc.com     |  the Great Lakes." - U.S. Senator John Glenn reacts
Modell delendus est |  to 33 U.S.C. 1122 as amended by Pub.L. 105-160