1. There is no limit to the number of software copyright holders, and there is no fixed number.
2. According to the relevant laws and regulations of our country, natural persons, legal persons or other organizations that independently develop and complete software, as well as natural persons, legal persons or other organizations that agree, inherit, assign or inherit software copyright through contracts, can become copyright owners. people.
"Software" is the abbreviation of computer software copyright, which refers to the exclusive rights enjoyed by software developers or other rights holders in accordance with relevant copyright laws in respect of software works. As far as the nature of the right is concerned, it is a kind of civil right and has the same characteristics as civil rights. Copyright is an exception among intellectual property rights because the acquisition of copyright does not require individual confirmation. This is what people often call the principle of "automatic protection." After the software is registered, the software copyright owner enjoys the right to publish, the right to developer identity, the right to use, the right to use permission and the right to receive remuneration.
The similarity between soft works and patents is that both can obtain government funding if the application is successful, and both can be used as conditions for applying for national high-tech enterprises.
The differences between soft copies and patents are:
1. The legal basis is different. Software copyright protection is implemented in accordance with the Copyright Law and the Computer Software Protection Regulations; patent protection is implemented in accordance with the Patent Law.
2. The protection principles are different. Software copyright is automatically generated after the software creation is completed, and software copyright registration is also voluntary. Patents must be filed with the Patent Office to obtain protection.
3. The objects of protection are different. The materials submitted for software copyright application are source code and user manual, so software copyright protects the form of expression, not the idea. If a competitor takes advantage of the software, changes the code, and rewrites the software with the same function, then it is not considered an infringement. Patents are different. What is described in the application is the design concept of the software. Once the patent is granted, as long as others adopt the design concept or solution of the software patent, it may constitute infringement.
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4. The application approval rates are different. The pass rate for software copyright registration is extremely high. Patent application requirements are highly technical and must meet many requirements such as novelty, creativity, and practicality. The application is difficult and the pass rate is low.
5. The information provided in the application is different. For software copyrights, you need to provide: the applicant’s identity document, application form, source code and instruction manual; for patents, you need to provide: the applicant’s identity document, entrustment instructions, and technical disclosure document (for appearance patents, pictures or photos are provided).
6. The application cycles are different. The software copyright application cycle is short and can be expedited, and the license can be issued in as soon as one day; the patent application cycle is long, especially for invention patents, which often require 1-2 years to be authorized and issued.
7. The protection periods are different. The protection period of software copyright is the life of a natural person and 50 years after death, which is similar to the protection period of copyright. The protection period for utility models and designs is 10 years from the filing date, and for invention patents is 20 years.
8. Application and maintenance fees are different. Software copyright only has an initial application fee and no subsequent maintenance fees; in addition to the initial application fee, a patent requires an annual fee to be paid every year. Failure to pay after the expiration date will be deemed as giving up the patent right. It takes several years to pay the annual patent fee.
Software can be applied for as a patent or as a soft copy. The value of patent protection is higher, but the patent application fee is also high. Relatively speaking, soft copies are not as protected as patents.
Legal basis:
Article 10 of "Copyright"
Article 10 of "Copyright Law of the People's Republic of China"
Copyright includes the following personal rights and property rights:
(1) Right of publication, that is, the right to decide whether the work will be made public;
(2) Right of signature, that is, indicating the identity of the author, on the work The right to sign;
(3) The right to modify, that is, the right to modify or authorize others to modify the work;
(4) The right to protect the integrity of the work, that is, to protect the work from distortion and tampering The right;
(5) The right to reproduce, that is, the right to make one or more copies of the work by printing, copying, rubbing, recording, videotaping, ripping, re-photographing, etc.