UCITA and UCC Acts

In any sector, it is extremely vital that there are rules and regulations that govern the individuals who are involved in the particular sector. This prevents misunderstandings in the players within that sector. These laws must also conform to the documented constitution of the state. In the United States, there have been Acts that have been put in place to regulate players in the business and commerce sector. Among these Acts are Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) and the Uniform Computer Information Transaction Act (UCITA). These laws conform to the United States constitution and are a guide to those individuals in the business and commerce sector. (Perritt, 2001)

The commerce clause was the first Act in the US government which was significant in both sides such that it helped in the business sector, and in the interactions of different member states in the United States.  A good example of these states interaction is the 1824 Gibbon vs. Ogden. It was then that interstate commerce was introduced and instrumentalised through different means of means such as telephone, highway and radios. This led to the revolving of power out of the boundaries as in the interstate commerce. It has also enabled the people in the state to carry out their businesses efficiently and easily, whether selling, shipping or delivering of personal belonging or property. It has been greatly enhanced by the continuous advancements in technology and globalization.

The enactment of UCITA has also made it easier to license intangible goods such as computers, and hence allowing owners of properties to continue purchasing and controlling their software. It is clear that immediately goods are purchased, they are classified as owner's (buyers) property.  This becomes effective upon the completion of transaction with the person purchasing the software. The license is given to the buyer as an acknowledgement of the buyer as the rightful owner. It also indicates that the person is in agreement with the specified terms and conditions.  As per the article 2 in the US constitution, the stipulations in the UCC are implemented in the processes of the sales, shipping and delivering of delicate good such as computer software. The Act also allows for the identification of the contracts under personal property while the UCITA caters for the licensing of tangible goods.

Selling a product leads to the entire transfer of ownership rights of the products in question. This implies that the seller ceases to have any ownership rights over the products. A contract exists that as evidence to the transfer of ownership rights. The contract could be implied, written or unwritten. Licensing, on the other hand, is the use of products by an individual for a stipulated amount of time, after which the products are returned to the owner. Under licensing, the ownership rights remain with the lessee unlike in the sales case. In licensing, the lessor transfers possession of the products for a particular agreed period of time.

The decision to document UCITA as a separate Act was reached at due to the fact that UCITA was found to be largely controversial. This is because UCITA contradicted the provisions in the U. S. Copyright Act under what is referred to as 'First Sale Doctrine'. In this doctrine, a purchaser has all the rights to buy creative pieces of work and resell them. This has been viewed to be highly unconstitutional. This could be termed as piracy as the purchaser benefits from the sale of other people's works (Dixon, 2004).