# Intellectual property and ownership

> CIE A-Level Computer Science · Unit 7: Ethics & ownership
> Source: https://www.owlsprep.com/study/cie-9618-u7-intellectual-property-and-ownership/

This sub-topic covers core types of intellectual property (IP) for digital assets, legal protection for creators, software licensing models, and common IP breaches, all frequently tested in CIE 9618 Paper 1 ethics questions.

**Prerequisites:** [Basic understanding of ethical issues in computing](https://www.owlsprep.com/study/cie-9618-u7-introduction-to-ethics/)

## Learning objectives

- Distinguish between different types of intellectual property relevant to digital assets
- Explain the rights of IP owners and responsibilities of users
- Identify IP breaches in common computing scenarios
- Apply IP knowledge to answer CIE 9618 exam questions

## What is Intellectual Property?

Intellectual property (IP) refers to legal rights that protect creations of the mind, including software, code, digital art, designs, and brand identities. IP law gives creators exclusive rights to control how their work is used, to incentivise innovation and ensure creators get fair reward for their effort.

**Intellectual Property** — Intangible property created by human intellect, protected by law to give the creator exclusive rights to use and monetise their work.

*Example:* A developer's full source code for a mobile app is intellectual property, while the laptop they wrote it on is tangible physical property.

**Worked example:** Which of the following is **not** classified as intellectual property?

1. 1. Recall that IP is defined as intangible creation of the mind. Option A: Code for an app is a creation of the mind, so it is IP.
2. 2. Option B: A company's physical office building is tangible property, not an intangible creation, so it is not IP.
3. 3. Option C: A new startup logo is a creative branding creation, so it is IP.
4. 4. Option D: Open-source software is still IP owned by its creators, just licensed differently, so it is IP.
5. Conclusion: The correct answer is B.

> **Exam tip:** Examiners regularly test the difference between tangible and intangible property when defining IP. Do not mix the two categories up.

## Types of Intellectual Property Protection

CIE 9618 requires you to know four main types of IP protection relevant to computing, each designed for different categories of creation:

- **Copyright**: Protects original expressive works like software code, literature, art, music, and websites
- **Patents**: Protect new inventions and functional processes, such as a new hardware design or novel algorithm that solves a technical problem
- **Trademarks**: Protect branding elements like names, logos, and slogans that distinguish a product/service from competitors
- **Trade Secrets**: Protect confidential business information, like proprietary algorithms, customer databases, or unannounced product plans

**Copyright** — Automatic legal protection for original expressive works that gives the owner exclusive rights to copy, distribute, modify, and sell the work. It applies automatically in most countries without registration.

*Example:* A developer's source code is protected by copyright as soon as it is saved to a file.

**Worked example:** A tech company has developed a new inventive method for compressing image files that cuts file size by 50% with no visible quality loss. What type of IP protection should they use to stop other companies from using their method?

1. 1. Identify the type of creation: it is a new functional, inventive process for image compression.
2. 2. Copyright only protects the expressive work (e.g., the written code of the compression tool), not the functional method itself, so it is not suitable.
3. 3. Patents are specifically designed to protect new functional inventions and processes, so this matches the requirement.
4. 4. Trademarks protect branding, which is irrelevant here. Trade secrets require the company to keep the method confidential; a patent stops others using it even if they discover it independently.
5. Conclusion: The company should use patent protection.

## Software Licensing

An IP owner of software can license it to others to use under specific terms. There are two broad categories of software license, with different rules for use:

- **Proprietary (Closed Source)**: Users pay for a license to use the software, and cannot access, modify, or redistribute the source code
- **Open Source**: The source code is made available to users, with terms set by the license: permissive licenses (e.g., MIT) allow commercial reuse, while copyleft licenses (e.g., GPL) require modified versions to be open sourced under the same terms
- **Creative Commons**: A common license for non-software digital work (images, videos, articles) that lets creators define free use terms, e.g., requiring attribution or prohibiting commercial use

**Worked example:** A student downloads an image licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial (CC BY-NC). They want to use it in a free school project and a paid commercial app they are building. Is this allowed?

1. 1. Recall the terms of CC BY-NC: *Attribution* requires crediting the original creator, *NonCommercial* prohibits use for commercial purposes.
2. 2. The free school project is non-commercial. As long as the student credits the creator, this use is allowed.
3. 3. The paid app is a commercial use, which is explicitly prohibited under the BY-NC license, so this use is not allowed.
4. Conclusion: Allowed in the free school project (with attribution), not allowed in the paid app.

## Common Intellectual Property Breaches

CIE exam questions regularly ask you to identify and explain common IP breaches in digital scenarios. The most common examples you need to know are:

- **Software Piracy**: Unauthorised copying, distribution, or use of copyrighted proprietary software (e.g., using a cracked version of paid software)
- **Plagiarism**: Passing off someone else's work or ideas as your own without attribution (e.g., copying code from a website and submitting it as your own)
- **Copyright Infringement**: Unauthorised copying or distribution of any copyrighted work (e.g., uploading a full movie to a public website)
- **Patent Infringement**: Using or selling a patented invention without the owner's permission
- **Trade Secret Misappropriation**: Stealing or leaking a company's confidential trade secrets (e.g., a former employee leaking an unreleased algorithm to a competitor)

**Worked example:** A film blogger posts a 5-minute review of a new release and includes a 30-second clip from the film to illustrate their point, without permission from the copyright owner. Is this copyright infringement?

1. 1. Recall that copyright has exceptions for fair use (or fair dealing) for purposes like criticism, review, and news reporting.
2. 2. The clip is short, used for the purpose of review, and does not replace viewing the original full movie.
3. 3. This qualifies as fair dealing, so it is not copyright infringement in most jurisdictions.
4. Conclusion: This is generally not considered copyright infringement.

## Common pitfalls

- **Wrong:** Thinking open source software has no owner and is not protected by IP
  - Why it fails: All software is owned by someone; open source just means the owner licenses it under permissive terms, not that it is public domain
  - Correct: Recognise open source software is still intellectual property, and you must follow the terms of its license to use it legally
- **Wrong:** Confusing copyright and patents
  - Why it fails: Students often mix up the purpose of these two common IP types
  - Correct: Remember: copyright protects expression (code, art, writing), patents protect new functional inventions (methods, processes, hardware)
- **Wrong:** Thinking unregistered work has no IP protection
  - Why it fails: Copyright is automatic in most countries, no registration or copyright notice is required
  - Correct: Know that original work is protected by copyright as soon as it is created, even if it is not registered
- **Wrong:** Using Creative Commons work without attribution because it is free
  - Why it fails: All Creative Commons licenses except CC0 (public domain) require attribution to the original creator
  - Correct: Always credit the original creator when using CC licensed work, unless it is explicitly marked as public domain
- **Wrong:** Claiming that sharing a link to a copyrighted work is always infringement
  - Why it fails: Sharing a link is not the same as copying or hosting the work itself
  - Correct: Infringement occurs when you copy or distribute the actual copyrighted work, not just link to it

## Cheatsheet

| IP Type | What It Protects | Computing Example |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Copyright | Original expressive works | Software code, websites, digital art |
| Patent | New functional inventions/processes | New compression algorithms, hardware designs |
| Trademark | Branding elements | Company logos, product names |
| Trade Secret | Confidential business information | Proprietary algorithms, customer data |
| CC License | Non-software creative work | Free-to-use images, articles |
| Open Source License | Software | Permissively licensed source code for reuse |

## What's next

Understanding intellectual property and ownership is a core foundational topic for the CIE 9618 ethics unit, and it connects to all other topics in this section, from data privacy to professional computing ethics. This knowledge is also critical for any future career in technology, where understanding IP licensing rules helps avoid legal risks when creating or using software and digital content. You can now build on this knowledge by exploring other core topics in the Unit 7 ethics syllabus.

- [Data Protection Legislation](https://www.owlsprep.com/study/cie-9618-u7-data-protection-legislation/)
- [Digital divide](https://www.owlsprep.com/study/cie-9618-u7-digital-divide/)
- [Databases](https://www.owlsprep.com/study/cie-9618-u8-overview/)

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