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45 UCLA L. Rev. 569 (1997-1998)
The Death of Copyright: Enforceability of Shrinkwrap Licensing Agreements

handle is hein.journals/uclalr45 and id is 583 raw text is: THE DEATH OF COPYRIGHT: ENFORCEABILITY OF SHRINKWRAP LICENSING AGREEMENTS Apik Minassian IN TRO D U CT IO N ........................................................................................................ 570 I. PURPOSES FOR TERMS INCLUDED IN LICENSING AGREEMENTS ........................ 572 A . Licensing Provision ................................................................................... 572 B. Prohibiting Reverse Engineering ............................................................... 573 C . W arranty D isclaim ers ................................................................................ 573 II. ENFORCEABILITY OF SHRINKWRAP LICENSING AGREEMENTS BASED UPON CONTRACT LAW ......................................................................... 574 A. Step-Saver Data Systems, Inc. v. Wyse Technology ..................................... 574 B. O n-Line Software Distribution ................................................................. 576 C . ProC D , Inc. v. Zeidenberg .......................................................................... 577 D . A N ew A rticle 2B ..................................................................................... 580 I1l. FEDERAL COPYRIGHT LAW PREEMPTION .......................................................... 583 A . ProC D , Inc. v. Zeidenberg .......................................................................... 586 B. The Economics of Copyright Law ............................................................. 588 C . Im plications of ProC D ............................................................................... 592 1. Altering the Balance: The First Sale Doctrine .................................. 593 2. The Shrinking of the Public Domain ................................................ 593 3. The Creation of Black M arkets ......................................................... 596 4. The Fair Use Doctrine and Reverse Engineering .............................. 598 IV. AN A LTERNATIVE A PPROACH .......................................................................... 601 C O N C LU SIO N ............................................................................................................ 606 A PPEN D IX ................................................................................................................. 608 The mass marketing of computer software has forced software producers and vendors to replace negotiated contracts with shrinkwrap licensing agreements. The modern trend in the law has been to enforce these licenses as contracts under the Uniform Commercial Code. The increased application of state contract law to sales of computer software raises important questions con- cerning federal copyright law preemption. In June 1996, the Seventh Circuit, * Comments Editor, UCLA Law Review, Volume 45. J.D. candidate, UCLA School of Law, 1998; B.A., University of California, Los Angeles, 1995. 1 would like to thank Professor Mark F. Grady for introducing me to this subject and for his valuable suggestions and comments. I would also like to thank all the Law Review staff for their hard work in preparing the Comment for publication. This Comment is dedicated to my parents, Michel and Liza, and to my sisters, Tamar and Sarin, for their love and continuous support.

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