I am looking for some advice from you experts on the Fastlane forum.
Years ago a friend of mine found a forty years old book with certain exercises to overcome a physical discomfort experienced by many people. The instructions are based on old traditions from the indians of South America. My friend has been using the exercises for a few years now and it appears to helpo him a lot. In the meantime, he has added a few other exercises to his daily program. I hope you will understand that I have to be vague about the exact nature of the exercises.
This friend now wants to write an ebook with instructions for doing the old indian exercises because he is sure that many people can benefit from them and that he can make money by helping these people.
The question he posed to me, is whether he will be violating some form of intellectual property rights of the person who wrote that book (approximately 45 years ago), just by writing a new book about the same old indian exercises. Of course, he will phrase everything differently from how it's phrased and presented in the old book.
I see two potential issues, the strict legal side of his question and the moral side.
As to the legal side: imho the intellectual property rights (if they apply at all) of the exercises don't belong to the writer of the original book and there shouldn't be any problem as long as my friend uses a fully different phrasing and presentation (for example instruction photo's instead of drawings, etc.).
The moral side is a different thing. Thanks to the 45 years old book my friend got to know the ancient exercises. So, one could argue that he owes the man who wrote that book something. However, the book is no longer in print and my friend found out that the writer passed away some 15 years ago. Should my friend try to find the heirs of the writer and offer them a form of royalty even though he will produce an ebook which will differ considerably from the old printed book?
I would be grateful to hear your expert opinions about this case?
Thanks.
Years ago a friend of mine found a forty years old book with certain exercises to overcome a physical discomfort experienced by many people. The instructions are based on old traditions from the indians of South America. My friend has been using the exercises for a few years now and it appears to helpo him a lot. In the meantime, he has added a few other exercises to his daily program. I hope you will understand that I have to be vague about the exact nature of the exercises.
This friend now wants to write an ebook with instructions for doing the old indian exercises because he is sure that many people can benefit from them and that he can make money by helping these people.
The question he posed to me, is whether he will be violating some form of intellectual property rights of the person who wrote that book (approximately 45 years ago), just by writing a new book about the same old indian exercises. Of course, he will phrase everything differently from how it's phrased and presented in the old book.
I see two potential issues, the strict legal side of his question and the moral side.
As to the legal side: imho the intellectual property rights (if they apply at all) of the exercises don't belong to the writer of the original book and there shouldn't be any problem as long as my friend uses a fully different phrasing and presentation (for example instruction photo's instead of drawings, etc.).
The moral side is a different thing. Thanks to the 45 years old book my friend got to know the ancient exercises. So, one could argue that he owes the man who wrote that book something. However, the book is no longer in print and my friend found out that the writer passed away some 15 years ago. Should my friend try to find the heirs of the writer and offer them a form of royalty even though he will produce an ebook which will differ considerably from the old printed book?
I would be grateful to hear your expert opinions about this case?
Thanks.
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