Legislation of Open Source Usage in Public and Private Institutions in Comparison in Developing Countries, Existing Legislation and New Challenges.

Abstract

Since 1837, when Charles Babbage discovered his machine of data analysis, until 1886, where in Berne, the Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works was signed, the protection of intellectual property developed at a frantic pace until now. The revolution in this field took place during last thirty years. Since 1980's and onwards the science of law has been required to cover radical developments and novel concepts, like the free and open source software movement. These developments affect most developing countries, each of which has separate legal background and historical development. This paper examines, from a historical overview of the international context and the circumstances of developing countries using Balkans as example, the existing legal framework and the actual conditions of open source usage in public and private institutions. In parallel it examines the reconciliation achieved due to the different developments and the process of European integration. Furthermore since most of the development of software has been originated from the United States and the UK, a comparison is taking place between the continental family of legislation with the Anglo- Saxon family of Law mainly examining the impact of the recent accession of US in the Berne Convention. Pivotal in this discussion would be the experience of Intellectual Property in UK, where the IP legislation has been established as a concept for the first time, and what could be the lessons shared. Furthermore it analyses the prospects, developments and the consolidation of copyright law open source software