Le présent mémoire a pour ambition d'analyser la nature juridique et les particularismes du contrat de progiciel. Dans une première partie, nous examinerons les obligations mises à la charge des parties puis nous tenterons de qualifier le contrat de progiciel au regard du droit civil. Dans une seconde partie, nous examinerons la formation du contrat de progiciel dans un environnement traditionnel puis dans les environnements électroniques. Nous aborderons plus particulièrement deux nouveaux modes de formation des contrats, que sont les mécanismes du «shrink-wrap» et du «click-wrap». Nous analyserons ensuite les clauses limitatives ou exonératoire de garantie et de responsabilité, la clause d'élection de for et les clauses relatives à la propriété intellectuelle. / This thesis is intended to analyse the nature and the particularities of software license package contracts. Firstly, the obligations of each party will be studied, after which it shall be endeavoured to qualify the software license package contract with regard to civil law. Secondly, the creation of the software license package contract in a generalised situation as well as in an electronic environment will be examined. Furthermore, two new methods of contract creation will be contemplated, namely the "shrink-wrap" and the "click-wrap" methods. Finally, clauses limiting or exonerating responsibilities and guaranties, the de for election clause and clauses in relation to intellectual property will be analysed.

This thesis examines the microeconomic consequences of the arrival of open source in the software market. Specifically, it analyzes three features of open source software by using specific models of industrial organization. Open source software is free, and may be modified or duplicated by anyone. The first paper studies the entry of an open source software in a closed source software market. Using a model of horizontal differentiation, the analysis considers a closed source firm's investment in the quality of its software. The introduction of open source on the market reduces the firm's investment in quality and increases the price of its software. Moreover, the entry of open source software may reduce consumer welfare. Post-entry by an open source software, the reduction in market share lowers the firm's incentive to invest in quality. The second paper features vertical differentiation to study a monopolist selling supporting product to its software. The study begins by contrasting the supply of support by an open source provider and a closed source vendor. The model shows that in both cases the levels of support offered are the same. In addition, consumer welfare is higher and profit lower under an open source software. Then, the paper considers the competition in the provision of support. Here, the supply of high level support is greater than under a monopolist. Finally, the monopolist adopts a dual licensing strategy to extract more surplus from developers interested in modifying open source software and redistributing the resulting product. This technique, when the developers place high value on the source code, generates more profit if the monopolist chooses to publish as open source rather than closed source. The last paper studies how a closed source firm is affected by the introduction of an open source benefiting from contributions by users. A vertical differentiation model is used, and reveals that, when contribution of users is present, the closed source vendor may lower its price to a level where it forces the open source out of the market. The firm's lower price not only increases demand for its software, but also induces consumers into switching from open to closed source software therefore reducing the contribution of users. / Les logiciels libres sont uniques en leur genre\ : non seulement sont-ils distribués gra-tuitement, mais on peut aussi les modifier et les copier. Cette thèse étudie l'impact de ces propriétés du logiciel libre sur la compétition et sur les entreprises de logiciel propriétaire. Des modèles propres à l'organisation industrielle sont utilisés. Le première étude examine l'arrivée d'un logiciel libre sur un marché occupé par un logiciel propriétaire. En utilisant un modèle de différenciation horizontale, le papier consi-dère une firme propriétaire qui investit dans la qualité de son logiciel. L'arrivée d'un logiciel libre cause l'entreprise du logiciel propriétaire à réduire le niveau de son investissement et à augmenter le prix de son produit. Il s'avère alors que l'introduction du logiciel libre sur le marché réduit l'investissement de l'entreprise et engendre même l'augmentation du prix du produit. De plus, l'arrivée du logiciel libre peut réduire le niveau de bien-être des consommateurs. Comme le logiciel libre ne réagit pas aux décisions stratégique de l'entreprise, cette dernière voit son marché réduit peu importe sa stratégie. La firme décide conséquemment de vendre un produit de moindre qualité à un prix plus élevé à une clientèle réduite. Le deuxième papier propose un modèle qui utilise la différenciation verticale afin d'exa-miner un monopoleur offrant un produit complémentaire à son logiciel. L'étude compare d'abord les cas d'un logiciel libre et d'un logiciel propriétaire, toujours dans le contexte d'un monopoleur offrant du support professionnel pour son logiciel. Il est établi que le bien-être des consommateurs est plus élevé, et le profit inférieur dans le cas d'un distributeur de logiciel libre. Ensuite, le modèle initial est modifié avec l'ajout d'une seconde entreprise offrant du support professionnel. Dans ce cas, l'offre de support de haut niveau est plus élevée. Finalement, le monopoleur adopte une stratégie de licences doubles. Ce concept permet au monopoleur de proposer la vente d'une licence même si son logiciel est libre. Cette technique génère plus de profits, certaines conditions étant présentes, que si l'entreprise optait pour un logiciel propriétaire. Un logiciel libre profite des contributions de ses usagers pour améliorer son produit. Le troisième papier examine l'arrivée d'un tel produit sur un marché dominé par un logiciel propriétaire. Le modèle de différenciation verticale utilisé contraste les deux logiciels dans un marché donné et révèle que la contribution des utilisateurs peut diminuer la part de marché du logiciel libre au profit de son conccurrent. De fait, en diminuant ses prix le licenceur du logiciel propriétaire incite le consommateur à délaisser le logiciel libre pour le produit de son concurrent.

2004年4月，歐盟執委會頒佈了新的「技術授權協議集體除外規則」及其「指導原則」，以取代1996年開始實施的舊規則。這個規則係在規範技術授權行為於歐體條約第81條下之合法性。其改革所代表的意義，主要則體現於兩個層面。其一，本次改革顯示了歐盟官方對於智慧財產權與競爭政策之關係的態度。其二，則是涉及到歐體競爭法之集體除外制度，乃至於競爭法本身如何更驅現代化的發展軌跡。以前者而言，歐體競爭法在執法思考上傾向於更加尊重智慧財產權之行使；就後者而言，則不論是在競爭規範或執法上，均更強調經濟導向的思維模式。尤其在集體除外規則中設計了以市占率為門檻之安全區制度，將使主管機關更能專注於真正重大限制競爭之案件，並使事業有更大的彈性空間因應日益複雜化的授權實務。 在現今全球化的商業實務，授權活動不可避免地將更具跨國性。因此本文的目的，即在於剖析歐盟新的集體除外制度，希冀提供各界參酌。除此以外，並藉由對歐盟新制的探討，回頭檢視我國公平法對於授權活動之規範。尤其，係對照分析公平會技術授權處理原則之規範說明。希望藉由探討歐盟新架構下的規範思考，亦能夠帶給我國規範或執法上一些新的啟發。 / On 7 April, 2004, the European Commission adopted a new Block Exemption Regulation with respect to technology transfer agreements (TTBER) along with some detailed Guidelines. The new Regulation, which replaces the Reg. 240/96, addresses the evaluation on licensing activities under Article 81 of the EC Treaty. This reform shows the official attitude toward the interaction between Intellectual Property Rights and the Competition Law. Moreover, it demonstrates the path of the modernization of Block Exemption Regulations, and also the EC Competition Law itself. This article will illustrate the framework of the new TTBER with comparison to the old one and the U.S. approach. Furthermore, it will survey our position on licensing practices, especially focusing on our “Fair Trade Commission Guidelines on Technology Licensing Arrangements”. Based on the research, a proposed revolution for Taiwan FTC’s measures concerning the licensing activities will be provided at the end of this article.

Society is increasingly calling for organisations to demonstrate corporate social responsibility (CSR). To fulfil this demand, organisations need to be accountable, democratic and transparent to their stakeholders. This can be achieved using a number of tools including communication about the environmental, social and economic impacts of an organisation’s actions and activities. Yet despite the importance of communicating environmental information, and society’s heightened environmental awareness, organisations are still demonstrating an insufficient commitment to environmental reporting, continuing their reluctance to be open and accountable about their environmental impacts. This suggests organisations currently have little understanding of why they should report, what they should report and/or how they should report. For environmental reporting progress to be achieved it is important that we have knowledge of how various factors influence voluntary environmental reporting engagement. This research, in contributing to and extending the body of environmental reporting knowledge, aims to provide an understanding of the Why, What and How of voluntary environmental reporting by specifically examining: why organisations should, and why organisations do, voluntarily report environmental information; what environmental information organisations should, and what environmental information organisations do, voluntarily report; and how organisations should, and how organisations do, voluntarily report environmental information. In using a combination of research methodologies this research extends prior CSR reporting studies – closing the gap between voluntary environmental reporting practice and theory, providing better insights into the underlying reasons and motivations for voluntary environmental reporting, and providing improved knowledge of the considerations made by companies as part of the voluntary environmental reporting process. In doing so, this research presents a more recent examination of voluntary environmental reporting in the annual reports of New Zealand and Australian publicly listed companies. Aspects of voluntary environmental reporting that have not been extensively examined before, particularly in Australasia, are examined. These include a focus on content-quality (as opposed to reporting quantity), an investigation of the effect of public pressure (using a combination of three proxy measures), and, through the use of qualitative research, an expansion of the insights obtained from quantitative data. This research finds that New Zealand and Australian publicly listed companies continue to have an insufficient and incorrect understanding of why they should report, what they should report and/or how they should voluntarily report environmental information. This deficient understanding results in voluntary environmental reporting in their annual reports which is inadequate – the reporting lacks meaning and purpose (i.e. has form but little or no substance), and reflects managers’ incorrect perceptions about the environmental impact of their company’s actions and activities. As a result voluntary environmental reporting in the annual reports of New Zealand and Australian publicly listed companies fails to “… give an understanding, which is not misleading, …” of the environmental consequences of an organisation’s actions and activities (adapted from Alexander & Jermakowicz, 2006, p. 132), providing little accountability to stakeholders, and serving neither external stakeholders nor those reporting well. As the demand for organisations to demonstrate accountability to stakeholders continues to increase over time it is important to develop informed environmental reporting guidance and undertake further examinations of the Why, What and How of environmental reporting.

This dissertation critically appraises some ofChauke's literary works within a semiotic approach especially in terms of colours of the spectrwn. In this study the spectrum is reganled as a replica or symbol of man's various filcets of Jife. Analyses of the representations of "Life is a Spectrum" have been made in tenns of psychological and symbolic &.cets. Cbauke's narrative s1yle in delineating characters and milieus sketching received attention in the discussion. The cunent scenario in education and politics as well as socio-economic issues have also been dealt with. This study has revealed that Chauke is an author who dmws readers very close to his works that serve as mirrors of their lives. It bas been established that Chauke is an outstanding writer who uses real situations and events that are relevant to people•s life in this contempotaty situation. / African Languages / M.A. (African Languages)

This dissertation is concerned with the financing of roads in terms of public finance economic theory. The theory of public goods is applied to the case of roads and it is concluded that roads possess significant elements of privateness and are therefore nonpure public goods. Given that roads are nonpure public goods, and that the market for roads has natural monopoly characteristics, it is proposed that user charges have a role to play in the financing of roads. Road user charging techniques such as licence fees, fuel levies, tolls, area licensing, parking charges and weight-distance charges are evaluated. The advantages of user charging versus tax earmarking and general fund financing are examined. A road financing system for South Africa is proposed, whereby National roads are financed by user charges, and Provincial and Local roads are financed partly by user charges and partly by general taxes. / Economics and Management Sciences / Thesis (M.Com.)--University of South Africa, 1996.

The purpose of the thesis was project a field road to reconstruct and modernize the current traffic connections between selected villages Sviny and Borkovice, using technology for application of Glorit. It was created reinforced major field road with turnouts the design category of P 4,5/30. Studies of the field communication were prepared in two different variants. The beginning of routes is in the village Sviny and end is in the village Borkovice. Both variants are connected to the current road. After the consultation with the executive of the thesis, one of the variants was evolved for building licence documentation. The documentation consists of plans and manual. Emphasis was placed mainly on routes to achieve fluency with regard to appropriate and sensitive integration of the field road to the countryside. There was also an effort to minimize earthwork and associated financial intensity of construction. The project of the field route was prepared in conformity with applicable national standards (DIN) and technical regulations that relate to the issue.

The purpose of this diploma thesis is to use relevant economic knowledge for the analysis of the key legal aspects of the natural monopoly, particularly the main theoretical aspects thereto. The interpretation is not limited to principle features, however, it covers also the related issues. The text is focused mainly on electricity and gas industries. Apart from applicable law and legal books, the relevant case law of the Constitutional Court and Supreme Administrative Court of Czech Republic has been also a significant source of knowledge hereto. The European Union legal regulations and expert opinions of the European Commission have been taken into account as well. The diploma thesis is divided into five chapters. The first chapter is focused on economic aspects of the applicable law. It provides thorough overview concerning the model and its introduction into reviewed fields. The principal information, historical background and view of the critics are introduced. This chapter also labels the entities under the Czech law that are considered to be the natural monopolies. Furthermore, three basic fields of legal institutes that are subject to subsequent review are outlined. The second chapter defines elementary terms relevant for further research. Specifically, it covers the distribution,...

This diploma thesis deals with selected legal questions regarding artwork in Czech Republic. Author focuses on artwork from copyright and civil legal perspective, specifically author´s rights and copyright and its legal protection (civil, administrative and criminal). It also addresses questions concerning licenses and licensing agreements, relation between artwork and its material object, buying and selling artwork, purchase agreement and other types of contract that artists usually encounter. The aim of this thesis is to identify the current state of legislation in this matter and issues that need to be addressed. Among other methods, author used a comparative method and a research in a form of survey in this thesis.

Master´s thesis titled: “Proposal Optimization of Information System" deals with the processing of contracts and possibilities of eliminate the major problems in the company TOROLA design s.r.o.. Based on analysis of internal and external mediums and the financial analysis, I will put forward changes, which they will be helped to improve of the situation of orders.