On 1/15/07, MacGyverMagic/Mgm macgyvermagic@gmail.com wrote:
In a previous discussion it was determined that most magic tricks aren't patented (for fear of revealing the method) or copyrighted (only the way it's written down in a book or recorded on a DVD or video is copyrighted). However, isn't exposure of commercially available effects considered [[piracy]] then?
Mgm
Isn't the correct paradigm here not copyright law but rather [[Trade secret]]s http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trade_secret?
"A company can protect its confidential information through non-compete non-disclosure contracts with its employees. The law of protection of confidential information effectively allows a perpetual monopoly in secret information - it does not expire as would a patent. The lack of formal protection, however, means that a third party is not prevented from independently duplicating and using the secret information once it is discovered."
If it is appearing on Wikipedia, it seems to me that the third party has manifestly discovered it; if they are complaining about it appearing on Wikipedia, then they are crying over spilt milk/trying to put the genie back into the bottle/cat into the bag, etc.
--Gwern