Quote:
Originally Posted by GeoffR
Well my view is that as a buyer I can use the ebook in any way I like consistent with the laws of the land, but as a licensee I am additionally subject to the conditions of the licence (provided those conditions are themselves lawful.)
Obviously the ebook retailers themselves see a difference, otherwise why would they put something like this in their terms and conditions?
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Because if they sold you the contents you could legally republish it?
Seriously, IP *can* be sold as well as licensed.
Lots of cases, especially in the software world.
(One notable case revolves around the FALLOUT franchise where the creators sold the IP and then licensed back the rights to create a MMO version within a given window of time. When they failed to complete the MMO they lost that right and ended up with nothing.)
That is the reason why IP publishers only sell use licenses, even when distributed on physical media. To sell the IP proper puts them out of business. It's an all or nothing proposition.
It's not all that different from the service businesses where, again, the product is intangible and often ephemeral.