[ Thanks to Phil
Kennedy for this link. ]
“The legislatures of four states have added a controversial
software licensing bill to their legislative calendars this year,
indicating that the proposal, which last year passed in Maryland
and Virginia, is picking up momentum. Arizona, Oklahoma,
Delaware, and Texas are scheduled to take up the Uniform Computer
Information Transactions Act (UCITA) in their current legislative
sessions, and other states are being approached by the National
Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws (NCCUSL) and
asked to do the same, said Carlyle “Connie” Ring Jr., chairman
of the NCCUSL’s UCITA drafting committee.”
“Ring laid out arguments in favor of UCITA during a panel
discussion Wednesday sponsored by the Washington Legal Foundation
that also featured opponents of UCITA. Meanwhile, the Virginia
legislature took steps to firm up its UCITA law, which doesn’t go
into effect until July 1.”
“The ongoing debate over legislation generally pits companies
that distribute software and want to increase their control over
the use of their products — including large companies such as
Microsoft and America Online — against small businesses,
programmers, libraries, and the insurance and banking
industries.”