Free software also enjoys copyright

Time and again you can see that it is believed that free software, especially shareware or freeware, can be packed on your own servers/websites, as it is free of charge. This is nonsense, of course, but it feels very widespread nonsense.

Now the Federal Court of Justice has also dealt with the issue and, with its ruling at the end of last month in favour of Microsoft, has decided that the legal opinion, which is certainly not in doubt among lawyers, is correct.

In the present case, the dispute concerned the free trial version of Office offered by the operator of an internet shop on its own site and via Ebay.

By uploading the trial versions, there is a “public representation” within the meaning of copyright, which would have been permitted only with the consent of Microsoft. The fact that Microsoft also offered the trial version for free download on its own pages does not change that.

The BGH also relies on EU law, since both relevant directives must be taken into account when interpreting German copyright law. What was relevant here was that a new audience was opened up by the dealer. This would only allow a link to the download option at Microsoft – or, of course, an explicit agreement with Microsoft.

Author: Marian Härtel

Marian Härtel ist Rechtsanwalt und Fachanwalt für IT-Recht mit einer über 25-jährigen Erfahrung als Unternehmer und Berater in den Bereichen Games, E-Sport, Blockchain, SaaS und Künstliche Intelligenz. Seine Beratungsschwerpunkte umfassen neben dem IT-Recht insbesondere das Urheberrecht, Medienrecht sowie Wettbewerbsrecht. Er betreut schwerpunktmäßig Start-ups, Agenturen und Influencer, die er in strategischen Fragen, komplexen Vertragsangelegenheiten sowie bei Investitionsprojekten begleitet. Dabei zeichnet sich seine Beratung durch einen interdisziplinären Ansatz aus, der juristische Expertise und langjährige unternehmerische Erfahrung miteinander verbindet. Ziel seiner Tätigkeit ist stets, Mandanten praxisorientierte Lösungen anzubieten und rechtlich fundierte Unterstützung bei der Umsetzung innovativer Geschäftsmodelle zu gewährleisten.