Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!ukma!husc6!wjh12!djb
From: djb@wjh12.harvard.edu (David J. Birnbaum)
Newsgroups: comp.fonts
Subject: Copyright and Fonts
Message-ID: <326@wjh12.harvard.edu>
Date: 30 Jan 89 04:14:02 GMT
Reply-To: djb@wjh12.UUCP (David J. Birnbaum)
Distribution: usa
Organization: Harvard University, Cambridge MA
Lines: 37

A number of rumors has been circulated here and in other newsgroups
about the copyright protection extended to digitized fonts.  I would
be grateful if anyone could provide any reliable information about
whether font names, bitmapped fonts, font outlines, scaling programs,
individual characters, design features (e.g., serif design), or any-
thing else related to digitized fonts can be protected by copyright.
I have heard rumors that *nothing* pertaining to fonts is protected.
At the other extreme, I have heard that font names are protected, so
that you or I could not create and distribute a "Times Roman" font
without paying a licensing fee.

I would appreciate any reliable information anyone can provide.  
Please do not circulate rumors - I already have more of those than I
need :-).  One reference someone mentioned was an article about font
copyright by Chuck Bigelow; a more precise pointer to where I could
find this article would be very welcome.  Any first hand information
or pointers to informed articles, either in legal or computer litera-
ture, would also be welcome.

Please email all replies.  I will summarize to this group if I learn
anything worthwhile.

Thank you.

--David J. Birnbaum

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