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Who Owns Source Code When a Company Folds?

Posted by Cliff on from the tough-questions-with-little-in-the-way-of-answers dept.

pipeb0mb asks: "A few years ago, I worked for Chilliware, Inc. as the 'Technical Development Manager'. Some of you may remember us for the software iceSculptor, Mohawk and Mentor. Chilliware folded rather quickly and harshly back in May of 2001 due to money issues. Within days of the first layoff, everyone was gone, from the CEO and VP's to the receptionist. Now, years later, I've been digging through some old CDs, and am reminded that I still have the final production source code for the products we released in the retail channel. I've attempted to contact several folks over the past couple of years to gather information about the software and who owns it now. To no avail though. Either I get an 'I don't know' or 'No one' from the dis-interested parties. I feel like these programs are my children that never got a fair shot. I hate to see so much work wasted and lost to the ages. So, Slashdot: What do I do with this source code? It's a great deal of well commented and well written code, performed by over 100 developers in a former Soviet Republic (who formerly worked with Boomerang Software). Where do my binary children go now?" As things are now, if a company folds, the code is buried and forgotten unless someone buys the rights to it, before the source code is lost. This issue was discussed a long time ago and there didn't seem to be much in the way of answers. Have 3 years made any difference?

3 of 490 comments (clear)

  1. SCO AGAIN by mausmalone · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    SCO OWNZ EVERYTHING LOLOLOLOL THE X-BOX CONTROLLER IS HUGE!!!!!

    Seriously, this is becoming the "take my wife, please" of Slashdot. Or possibly Slashdot's own "It's a trap" a la SA. It's a dead horse. Stop flogging it.

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  2. only if by SHEENmaster · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    you license SCO software, use Linux, or come withing 300 feet of either. In any other case, Microsoft owns it.

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    You can't judge a book by the way it wears its hair.
  3. Re:creditors and dead SCO by AndroidCat · · Score: 0, Offtopic
    If SCO gets squashed in court, I wonder what will happen to the IP that they do own? Eventually somebody will end up with them. Hopefully the ability to cause trouble with them would be reduced after a court loss, but somebody could aquire them with more mischief in mind.

    As other posts have pointed out, someone always owns the remaining assets, including IP. Those UNIX IPs are going to be kicked around for sometime. (Baring some nice company releasing it under the GPL.)

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