An interesting copyright infringement claim was filed in the Northern District of California on July 29th, 2011. The case is Amy Roman v. Intuary, Inc, Case No. 11-CV-3739.
Interface of Roman's Software
The plaintiff, Amy Roman, is an ACC (augmentative alternative communication) Specialist who designed a software interface to assist people who have difficulty communication. Through her software interface, she places letters, and key phrases on the GUI which are then used by individuals with speech and language disabilities. According to the complaint, her software, the AlphaCore Method, is based on the concept of “Core Vocabulary” which comprises the 200 words that account for about 80% of the words used in communication.
According to the complaint, following an unsuccessful licensing negotiation with the defendant, Intuary proceeded to launch its own version of an ACC program called “Verbally“.
Defendant's software
Roman claims that “no fewer than 15 of the 20 pre-stored phrases Verbally includes in its user interface are identical or substantially similar to phrases included in the AlphaCore Method User Interface”.
The question is, fellow readers, does she have a claim? One of her arguments is that the pre-stored phrases are the same. But if said phrases are a “known set of commonly used words”, can Roman claim ownership? Is this a case of a compilation or rather a fully original work? What about its possible functionality or the idea-merger doctrine?
Check out the complaint below and chime in!
