Copyright infringement prevention

In an approach for determining printability of an electronic file, a computer electronically receives a file for printing. The computer parses the file for one or more of text, images, and formatting indicative of potential copyrighted material. The computer, in response to identifying any text, images, or formatting indicative of potential copyrighted material, identifies potential copyrighted material within the file. The computer determines whether the file may be printed based, at least in part, on the identified potential copyrighted material. In another approach for determining printability of an electronic document, a computer electronically receives a document for printing. The computer locates attributes associated with the document and stored in a separate database, which includes one or more of the following: ownership, licensing information, printability, and number of prints allowed. The computer determines the document is printable based on the attributes and prints the document.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to the field of document analysis, and more particularly to preventing unauthorized replication of copyrighted materials.

Intellectual property refers to work (i.e., creative, intellectual, or artistic forms) produced by creations of the mind through the exercise and expenditure of creative talent and effort. The work produced may comprise music, literature, discoveries, inventions, words, phrases, symbols, etc. The creator of these works may be granted intellectual property rights. Intellectual property rights are legally recognized, exclusive rights to creations of the mind which entitle the creator the right to reproduce, distribute, display, and or perform the protected work, and create derivative works. Common types of intellectual property rights include patents (e.g., rights for discoveries and inventions), trademarks (e.g., rights for words, phrases, and symbols), and copyrights (e.g., rights for music, literature, and artistic works). Copyrights grant the creator of an original work exclusive rights to reproduce, prepare, distribute, and perform the original work for a limited period of time (i.e., life of the creator plus seventy years after death). In other words, a copyright gives the rights holder, a “right to copy” the work.

In some instances, copyrights may be considered sanctioned monopolies (e.g., single supplier of a commodity) which may interfere with a free market, freedom of speech, and education and equality of access. Therefore, in copyright law, exceptions and limitations exist which provide provisions to allow copyrighted works to be used without a license from the copyright owner, thus balancing the public's interest with the interest of the creator. Limitations and exceptions to copyrights include the fair use doctrine (which permits limited use in instances, such as search engines, news reporting, research, teaching, etc.), threshold of originality (i.e., threshold below which objects cease to be copyrightable), idea-expression dichotomy (i.e., limits the scope of a copyright by differentiating an idea from the expression), and the public domain (i.e., works whose intellectual property rights have expired or are otherwise available for public use).

Printers and image scanners are devices which are capable of creating identical, duplicate reproductions of an original item, such as a document or image. Printers create human-readable representations of graphics or text on physical media (e.g., paper or transparencies). Printers receive print job requests (e.g., electronic file to be printed), and store the information in a printer buffer (e.g., temporary memory) which is accessed by a print simultaneous peripheral operations on-line (SPOOL) which places the print jobs into a queue for processing. The print jobs are then processed, thus creating a duplicate copy or multiple, duplicate copies for utilization. Image scanners are devices which optically scan images, text, handwriting, etc., and create a digital image (e.g., electronic copy) of the information. A scanned image is created by placing hardcopy information upon the glass window of the image scanner. The image scanner utilizes a movable light source, in conjunction with fixed and movable mirrors, to scan the hardcopy and deliver the information to a charge-coupled device which processes the received information and creates the digital file. The digital image may then be stored on a computer or removable hardware (e.g., memory card) to be utilized, printed, or shared with other users.

SUMMARY

Aspects of the present invention disclose a method for determining printability of an electronic file. According to one embodiment of the present invention, a computer electronically receives a file for printing. The computer parses the file for one or more of text, images, and formatting indicative of potential copyrighted material. The computer, in response to identifying any text, images, or formatting indicative of potential copyrighted material, identifies potential copyrighted material within the file. The computer determines whether the file may be printed based, at least in part, on the identified potential copyrighted material.

Additionally, aspects of the present invention also disclose a method for determining printability of an electronic document. According to another embodiment of the present invention, a computer electronically receives a document for printing. The computer locates attributes associated with the document and stores in a separate database, wherein the attributes include one or more of the following: ownership, licensing information, printability, and number of prints allowed. The computer determines that the document is printable based on the attributes and prints the document.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Copyright infringement refers to the use of copyrighted works without permission, violating the exclusive rights of the copyright holder (e.g., right to reproduce, distribute, display, etc.). In utilizing any of the exclusive rights provided to the copyright holder without permission, the copyright holder may be entitled to compensation. Compensation may include damages (i.e., lost profits), statutory damages (i.e., multiple of the price which would have been paid for permission), fines, and potentially a jail sentence.

As recognized by embodiments of this invention, introduction of the Internet and World Wide Web, along with the development of digital media and computer network technologies, has brought about additional difficulties in enforcing copyrights and mitigating against inadvertent copyright infringement. Embodiments of this invention recognize copyright infringement may occur due to inadvertent actions taken by an individual not recognizing information to be copyrighted. Furthermore, printers and image scanners replicate (e.g., copies) documents, text, and images sent to the printer or scanned by the image scanner, both digitally (e.g., in memory) and physically (e.g., on paper), without regard to content. Embodiments of this invention analyze information (e.g., files) prior to printing to determine if the information is copyrighted. Embodiments of this invention may also determine if an individual is authorized to print identified copyrighted information, thus reducing the possibility of copyright infringement.

The present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the Figures.FIG. 1is a functional block diagram illustrating a distributed data processing environment, generally designated100, in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.FIG. 1provides only an illustration of one embodiment and does not imply any limitations with regard to the environments in which different embodiments may be implemented.

In the depicted embodiment, distributed data processing environment100includes computing device110, server120, and printer device140interconnected over network130. Distributed data processing environment100may include additional computing devices, mobile computing devices, servers, computers, storage devices, or other devices not shown.

Computing device110may be an electronic device or computing system, capable of executing machine readable program instructions and receiving and sending data. In various embodiments, computing device110may be a laptop computer, a tablet computer, a netbook computer, a personal computer (PC), a desktop computer, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a smart phone, or any programmable electronic device capable of communicating with another computing device via network130. In other embodiments, computing device110may represent a computing system utilizing multiple computers and components acting collectively to perform a task when accessed through network130, as is common in data centers and with cloud computing applications. Computing device110includes application software112and file114.

Application software112is a set of one of more programs designed to carry out operations, including the capability for information to be sent to printer buffer142of printer device140for printing. In a preferred embodiment, application software112is a program which provides a selectable option to print a file such as file114(e.g., print command is selected from a drop down menu initiating the printing process). In another embodiment, application software112references programmed computer functions recognizing a selection from a keyboard (e.g., print screen key on a keyboard, combination of keyboard selections, print key on a printer) which may print the current viewable information or save the information as a screenshot as an electronic file. In the depicted embodiment, application software112resides on computing device110. In another embodiment, application software112may reside on server120or on another device (not shown) connected over network130. Application software112sends information to printer device140, and the information is stored in printer buffer142.

File114is a self-contained, electronic piece of information or data available to a user either on or through a computing device, such as computing device110, that is capable of being stored and/or printed (e.g., text file, document, image, e-mail attachment, webpage). A printable file, such as file114, may include text and/or graphics in a variety of formats (e.g., logos, pictures, stanza, drop cap based print, barcodes). File114may additionally include embedded metadata. Metadata may include information describing various attributes or fields associated with file114. Take, for example, a current text file, such as an electronic document. The current electronic document will likely have existing attributes or properties that can be edited, including “Title,” “Subject,” “Authors,” “Last saved by,” “Comments,” etc. Embodiments of the present invention may associate additional such descriptors with file114, such as copyright ownership, print permissions, and other desired information. Persons of skill in the art will recognize that metadata associated with file114may be stored, accessed, and utilized in a number of ways. In one embodiment, file114is stored on computing device110. In another embodiment, file114is stored on server120. In some other embodiment, file114is a stored scanned image on printer device140. In yet another embodiment, file114may be stored on another server or computing device, or may be accessed over the Internet and World Wide Web via network130.

Server120, in various embodiments, may be a laptop computer, a tablet computer, a netbook computer, a personal computer (PC), a desktop computer, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a smart phone, or any programmable device capable of communication with computing device110and printer device140over network130. In other embodiments, server120may represent a server computing system utilizing multiple computers and components that act as a single pool of resources when accessed through network130, as is common in data centers and with cloud computing applications. Server120includes printable file attribute storage122.

Printable file attribute storage122is an organized collection of data associated with specific files, typically with regard to print permissions, and which may include information such as metadata, printer attributes, user id of a print job request (or historical print job requests), and file attributes (e.g., file name, date modified, file size, location, etc.) associated with file114, supporting future processing of potentially copyrighted information. Metadata, as described above, provides additional information about data for file114. Metadata associated with file114and stored in a separate database (e.g., printable file attribute storage122) may act as an alternative to additional embedded metadata stored with file114. In another implementation, additional metadata associated with file114may be both embedded in file114and stored in a separate database. Furthermore, in such a scenario, the additional metadata embedded with file114may describe different attributes of file114than the metadata stored in a separate database. The stored attributes may be assigned to file114through another application (e.g., e-mail client, web browser), manually through a user, or by a previous determination of copyright infringement prevention program200.

Initially, copyright infringement prevention program200accesses printable file attribute storage122to determine whether file114has been printed previously and if it may be printed again. At completion, copyright infringement prevention program200stores the data determined (e.g., user id, number of copies printed, if file114includes copyrighted materials) associated with a print job request, along with file attributes of file114in printable file attribute storage122for future use. Printable file attribute storage122can be implemented with any type of storage device that is capable of storing data that may be accessed and utilized by copyright infringement prevention program200. In one embodiment, printable file attribute storage122resides on server120. In another embodiment, printable file attribute storage122resides on computing device110. In other embodiments, printable file attribute storage122may reside on another server or another computing device connected over network130, provided that printable file attribute storage122is accessible to copyright infringement prevention program200.

Network130may be a local area network (LAN), a wide area network (WAN) such as the Internet, a wireless local area network (WLAN), any combination thereof, or any combination of connections and protocols that will support communications between computing device110, server120, printer device140, and other computing devices and servers (not shown), in accordance with embodiments of the inventions. Network130may include wired, wireless, or fiber optic connections.

Printer device140is a device which accepts text and graphic output from a computing device, transferring the information to create a human-readable representation of the text of graphics on paper or a similar type of material. Examples of printer device140include printers capable of reproducing text and graphics in color, black and white, varying degrees of resolution (i.e., sharpness of text and images on paper), and printing speeds. Printer device140may transfer ink to paper or a similar material, generally without physical contact with an inked material, employing methods such as scanning with a laser beam to a photoreceptor (e.g., laser printer), thermal transference of a melted material over a print drum (e.g., solid ink printer), spraying of ink from an ink cartridge (e.g., ink-jet printer) in addition to other methods not mentioned. Printer device140may include built in memory that may be upgraded to handle more or larger print jobs, increase printing speeds, improved print quality, or a combination the aforementioned items. In one embodiment, printer device140may be a network or shared printer designed for high-volume and high speed printing for multiple users connected over network130. In another embodiment, printer device140may be a personal desktop printer for an individual user connected directly to computing device110. In some other embodiment, printer device140may be a combination printer and scanner (e.g., optically reads images and text, converting the information to a digital image). In one embodiment, printer device140receives file114from computing device110. In another embodiment, printer device140receives file114as a scanned image from the built in scanner of printer device140. Printer device140includes printer buffer142and copyright infringement prevention program200.

Printer buffer142, in one embodiment, references a temporary location within the built in computer memory of printer device140that stores and processes a print job (e.g., uniquely identified file or set of files assigned to a printer) prior to actual printing. In another embodiment, printer buffer142references a temporary location within memory of a computing device or server (not shown). Printer buffer142receives the print job (e.g., file114) from computing device110, allowing computing device110to continue operating while printer device140is printing. In one embodiment, printer buffer142is associated with network printers connected to multiple computing devices. In another embodiment, printer buffer142is associated with a single computing device. Printer buffer142stores the print jobs until the print spooler (e.g., software managing print jobs sent to the printer) retrieves and processes the print jobs for printing in the order received, on a first-come first-served basis. After printing, the print job is cleared from printer buffer142. In one embodiment, printer buffer142receives file114from computing device110. In another embodiment, printer buffer142receives file114as a scanned image created through a built in scanner of printer device140. Printer buffer142is accessed by copyright infringement prevention program200. Printer buffer142may also temporarily store additional information generated by copyright infringement prevention program200.

Copyright infringement prevention program200is a program (e.g., application software, firmware) which assists in determining whether file114should be printed by printer device140. In the depicted embodiment, copyright infringement prevention program200is incorporated into the software or memory of printer140. In another embodiment, copyright infringement prevention program200may be a background application (e.g., program which is always running but not continuously interacted with) on computing device110monitoring print job requests. In some other embodiment, copyright infringement prevention program200resides on server120. In yet some other embodiment, copyright infringement prevention program200may reside on another server, computing device, or another printer device connected over network130, provided that copyright infringement prevention program200has access to file114and printable file attribute storage122. Copyright infringement prevention program200initiates upon receipt of an indication of a print job request (e.g., selecting “print” from a dropdown menu within an application begins a chain of actions to process the print job request and accesses printer140and associated software). Copyright infringement prevention program200executes prior to allowing file114to be printed. Copyright infringement prevention program200may determine if file114includes copyright materials. Copyright infringement prevention program200may also determine whether a user id is authorized to print copyrighted material within file114. Additionally, copyright infringement prevention program200may assist in limiting the distribution of approved copyrighted materials by restricting the number of copies allowed to be printed.

FIG. 2is a flowchart depicting operational steps of copyright infringement prevention program200for analyzing print job requests of file114and determining authorization to print in the event of copyrighted materials being present in file114, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

In step202, copyright infringement prevention program200receives an indication of a print job request. In one embodiment, copyright infringement prevention program200receives an indication of a print job request for file114through application software112on computing device110. In another embodiment, copyright infringement prevention program200receives file114as a scanned image through printer device140when a scan is initiated.

In step204, copyright infringement prevention program200searches permanent storage for data related to or associated with the file received through the print job request. In one embodiment, the data related, to or associated with, the file may actually include a copy of the file itself. While, in one implementation copyright infringement prevention program200will search local storage on printer device140, in a preferred embodiment, copyright infringement prevention program200will search accessible web-based storage, e.g., printable file attribute storage122on server120. This has several advantages, including not requiring that printers maintain high capacity storage and allowing multiple printers to access the same, existing version of maintained files. Copyright infringement prevention program200searches printable file attribute storage122for data associated with file114(e.g., searches for the same file name).

In decision206, based on its search of permanent storage, copyright infringement prevention program200determines whether printable file attribute storage122includes data associated with the requested file to be printed. This will often be the case, for example, with a print job request for file114which has not previously been printed. In one embodiment, to ensure that the stored data is truly associated with the specific file to be printed (e.g., file114), multiple attributes are considered and matched. For example, an identical document title may be found in printable file attribute storage122. However, there could be different versions of a similarly titled document, or other factors allowing two different documents to be associated with the same title or other file attribute, and copyright infringement prevention program200may compare additional file attributes, such as the date modified, file size, and author to further determine whether a match is found.

If copyright infringement prevention program200determines that printable file attribute storage122does not include data associated with file114to be printed (decision206, no branch), copyright infringement prevention program200creates at least one entry in printable file attribute storage122in which to store data associated with file114(step212), including, for example, the specific print request being handled. As additional information is gained with respect to file114, the associated entry may be updated with this information for future use.

If copyright infringement prevention program200determines that printable file attribute storage122does include data associated with file114to be printed (decision206, yes branch), copyright infringement prevention program200determines whether file114is printable (decision208).

In decision208, when determining whether file114is printable, copyright infringement prevention program200, in various embodiments, may access attributes stored in the embedded metadata of file114and/or attributes stored in association with file114in a separate database. In one embodiment, embedded metadata in file114may include a print permission field. Such a field may be set to “printable,” “not printable,” “unknown,” or other indications of whether file114may be printed (e.g., “yes” or “no”; “0” or “1”, etc.). Copyright infringement prevention program200may identify the contents of such a field to determine printability. Such a field may be set upon original receipt of the document, may be manually entered, or may automatically entered or amended based on a previous iteration of copyright infringement prevention program200.

As an example, a company may obtain copyrighted material under a licensing agreement. Upon receipt, the obtained file114may automatically have a field set to “printable” or “not printable” based on licensing terms. Alternatively, based upon the licensing terms, an administrator for the company may manually set the field. Such a licensing agreement may include a limited number of times that file114may be printed. This number may also be stored as embedded metadata, and could be decreased with each print request. While the count is greater than zero, the printability field may continue to be set to “printable”. When such a count were to reach zero the printability field could be adjusted to “not printable.” Alternatively, copyright infringement prevention program200may examine both the printability field and an existing count field.

As another example, when file114is owned or created by the company, a default setting may be “printable,” or this may be entered by an administrator or other employee.

In another embodiment, the above discussed attributes may be stored separately from file114(e.g., in printable file attribute storage122). This is beneficial when file114does not have additional descriptive metadata added to them, or if there are multiple copies of file114that do have such attributes. For example, if file114does not have metadata associated with it, copyright infringement prevention program200can create associations and attributes including, in one embodiment, a determination of whether file114is “printable” or “not printable” (as discussed with regard to steps216-224). Any subsequent request to print the same file114could then be accomplished without having to repeat the determination. In the case of multiple copies of file114, for example, a count attribute of a number of allowed print jobs within printable file attribute storage122would ensure that additional prints of alternate copies are also taken into account.

If copyright infringement prevention program200determines file114is not printable (decision208, no branch), copyright infringement prevention program200cancels the print job request (step228). If, on the other hand, copyright infringement prevention program200determines file114is printable (decision208, yes branch), copyright infringement prevention program200may determine whether the user id is authorized to print (decision210). This optional determination allows for the possibility that only a specific subset of user ids may be authorized to print or make copies of file114. A field or attribute associated with file114may be set (e.g., either embedded within file114or in a central database) identifying such authorized user ids. If the user id submitting the print job request is not authorized (decision210, no branch), copyright infringement prevention program200cancels the print job request (step228).

If file114is “printable” (decision208, yes branch) and, optionally, if the user id is authorized to print (decision210, yes branch), file114is printed and any identified or altered attributes are stored in printable file attribute storage122(step226). For example, if there is a “count” attribute for allowable prints, this will be reduced by one. Attributes may also be updated in embedded metadata. Additionally, any attributes stored within embedded metadata of file114may be used to update attributes stored in printable file attribute storage122.

Returning to decision206, as previously mentioned, if copyright infringement prevention program200determines printable file attribute storage122does not include data associated with file114(decision206, no branch), copyright infringement prevention program200creates at least one entry in printable file attribute storage122in which to store data associated with file114(step212).

In decision214, copyright infringement prevention program200determines whether the file114is printable. As discussed with regard to decision208, copyright infringement prevention program200may analyze file114attributes from the metadata attached to file114(e.g., print permission field, number of copies, etc.). Unlike decision208, however, in decision214because attributes did not previously exist in printable file attribute storage122, copyright infringement prevention program200can only utilize existing embedded metadata attached to file114.

If copyright infringement prevention program200determines file114is printable (decision214, yes branch), copyright infringement prevention program200may determine whether the user id is authorized to print (step210), and will ultimately print file114(step226) or cancel the print job request (step228) as discussed previously. If copyright infringement prevention program200determines file114is not printable (or at least not specifically designated as printable) (decision214, no branch), copyright infringement prevention program200determines whether file114may be printed irrespective of the indicator assigned within the print permission field. One implementation of this determination is embodied by collective steps216-224. While file114, received or obtained under certain conditions, may have clear indications of copyright and/or printability, this may be more difficult to ascertain in other variations of file114. For example, file114may be obtained from the internet or scanned into a computer or printer without regard to copyright, and a user may attempt to print file114. In an instance such as this, file114may be assigned a default attribute of “not printable” or may not include a “printability” field. Copyright infringement prevention program200will assess and determine the printability of these variations of file114as well. In another embodiment, a “not printable” attribute indicates no further assessment should be performed and the print job should be canceled. In such an embodiment, steps216-224may only occur in response to no indication or an inconclusive indication of whether or not file114is “printable.”

In step216, copyright infringement prevention program200identifies potential copyrighted materials from file114. Copyright infringement prevention program200searches file114for various indications that materials within file114are potentially copyrighted. Indicators may include specific images, textual words or phrases, formats, and identifiers. In one embodiment, copyright infringement prevention program200may identify images and text while searching file114based on stored and predetermined images (e.g., fonts, bars, marks, captions, symbols etc.) used to denote publications. For example, copyright infringement prevention program200may identify the copyright “©” image and/or the associated text “Copyright © 2008 Author Name All rights reserved” as an indication that copyrighted materials exist within file114. In another embodiment, copyright infringement prevention program200may identify one or more formats indicative of potential copyrighted information or material (e.g., drop cap based print, stanza, columns of text, etc.). For example, copyright infringement prevention program200may identify drop cap based print (i.e., enlarged first letter of the first word starting a paragraph, spanning multiple lines) in conjunction with double column text, indicating a periodical or newspaper article. Copyright infringement prevention program200may also identify commercial publication identifiers (e.g., International Standard Book Number (ISBN), barcode, International Standard Serial Numbers (ISSN)). For example, copyright infringement prevention program200may identify a thirteen digit number within a document, which corresponds to an ISBN number associated with a published book. In one embodiment, copyright infringement prevention program200may set an attribute or a flag within file114, or within printable file attribute storage122, to indicate whether file114does or does not include identified potential copyrighted materials.

If copyright infringement prevention program200determines file114includes identified, potential copyrighted materials (decision218, yes branch), copyright infringement prevention program200determines whether the potential copyrighted materials included in file114exist in a repository of approved copyrighted materials (decision220). If copyright infringement prevention program200determines file114does not include potential copyrighted materials (decision218, no branch), copyright infringement prevention program200prints file114. (step226)

In decision220, copyright infringement prevention program200determines whether permissions exist in the repository for the identified potential copyrighted material which are approved for use. “Approved” material, within the repository may be, for example, material to which license or right to the material has been acquired, or the reproduction of which may have previously been determined to comport with current law. Copyright infringement prevention program200accesses the repository of approved copyrighted materials (as identified by company logos, licenses, subscription agreements, copyright permissions, etc.) in permanent and/or temporary memory (e.g., printer buffer142) or, for example, on server120. Copyright infringement prevention program200searches the approved copyrighted materials for the indicators of identified, potential copyrighted materials identified in file114(e.g., company logos, images, text etc.). Copyright infringement prevention program200compares the identified potential copyrighted materials with the approved copyrighted materials. Copyright infringement prevention program200may identify a match within the approved copyrighted materials of the repository. When a match is identified, copyright infringement prevention program200may perform additional comparisons between approved copyright data and the identified potential copyright data (e.g., text comparison, file attribute comparisons).

For example, an ISBN within file114is identified as indicative of potential copyrighted materials. Copyright infringement prevention program200searches the approved ISBN entries within the repository of approved copyrighted materials for the identified ISBN. Copyright infringement prevention program200matches the identified ISBN with an approved ISBN entry within the repository of approved copyrighted materials. Copyright infringement prevention program200then compares the portion of text identified as potential copyrighted materials from file114to the text in the repository associated with the ISBN. If the text matches, copyright infringement prevention program200determines the potential copyrighted material to be approved copyrighted material.

Alternatively, copyright infringement prevention program200may not identify a match within the approved copyrighted materials of the repository. For example, column based text (e.g., newspaper article format) is present in file114, which may indicate file114includes potential copyrighted materials. The column based text is not stored within the repository of approved texts; therefore, copyright infringement prevention program200determines file114may include unapproved copyrighted material and continues additional processing to determining if printing is allowed.

In step222, copyright infringement prevention program200searches available online resources (e.g., webpages and online databases) for identified potential copyrighted materials utilizing search engines and application search functions. In one embodiment, copyright infringement prevention program200searches for the identified, potential copyrighted material from file114by predetermined standards set within copyright infringement prevention program200(e.g., complete text, number of lines of a complete text, ISBN, metadata indicating author name). For example, the title of a publication was extracted from the embedded metadata and is entered into an online database (e.g., standard search engines, Copyright Clearance Center, public record search of the United States Copyright Office) as search criteria. If the title is registered, results are returned, including information pertaining to the publication (e.g., registration number, title, copyright claimant, contact information, etc.). Additionally, some online database services may also include existing copyright permissions (e.g., license is owned by a user or entity through previous actions) and options to acquire permissions. In another embodiment, copyright infringement prevention program200may perform searches for the identified potential copyrighted material from file114(e.g., keywords, portion of text, verses) as determined by a user. For example, file114includes two pages of potential copyrighted materials in a stanza based format (e.g., the text appears similar to song lyrics and includes repetitive lines of text). Copyright infringement prevention program200may provide the user an option to define a search. The user is able to reduce the amount of text to a single line of repetitive text and may select specific search engines, creating a tailored and possibly more efficient search.

In some other embodiment, copyright infringement prevention program200searches for identified potential copyrighted materials within file114with a plagiarism checker. Plagiarism checkers retrieve documents containing similar text to the identified potential copyrighted material of file114within a set threshold, and perform comparisons to determine a likelihood of plagiarism. Copyright infringement prevention program200may search by one or more of the aforementioned items for identified, potential copyrighted materials, as selected by a user and/or by predetermined set standards. For example, a user may select just the portion of text within a document that includes drop cap based print for the plagiarism checker. The drop cap based print will then be evaluated to determine a percentage of similar text which, dependent on the threshold set, will indicate the likelihood of file114including plagiarized information.

In decision223, copyright infringement prevention program200determines whether the identified potential copyrighted materials are copyrighted. Copyright infringement prevention program200reviews the online resource results of the web based and online database searches and the results of the plagiarism checker. For example, file114may be a report which includes a title reference. The online database search results return copyright information, based on the title, which indicates file114may include copyrighted materials, thereby triggering additional assessment. The plagiarism checker then analyzes the materials within file114, and a uniqueness score of ninety-seven percent is returned. Copyright infringement prevention program200determines the materials are not plagiarized, are not subject to another's copyright, and may be printed. Alternatively, the returned results may indicate file114may be copyrighted such as, in a slightly modified example, the plagiarism checker returns a uniqueness score of five percent which is below the set threshold (e.g., text is plagiarized), and the copyrighted materials may, therefore, be subject to another's copyright. If copyright infringement prevention program200determines the potential copyrighted materials are not copyrighted, (decision223, no branch), copyright infringement prevention program200prints file114and stores the file attributes (step226). If copyright infringement prevention program200determines the potential copyright materials are copyrighted, (decision223, yes branch) copyright infringement prevention program determines whether printing of the copyrighted materials are prohibited (decision224).

In decision224, copyright infringement prevention program200determines whether the printing of the copyrighted materials is prohibited. Copyright infringement prevention program200assesses the results of the online resource searches and the results of the plagiarism checker. Based on the search results, copyright infringement prevention program200may determine the copyrighted materials exist in the public domain and are not subject to another's copyright, such as when copyrights have expired and printing is not prohibited. In other instances, a copyright license is determined to already be owned for file114and printing is not prohibited. For example, an ISBN search of the Copyright Clearance Center from a user account shows a license is already owned by an entity (e.g., corporation, individual, etc.); therefore, printing is not prohibited.

Copyright infringement prevention program200may also take into account the results of the plagiarism checker when file114is not in the public domain and licenses are not currently owned. Copyright infringement prevention program200may utilize a threshold based on a calculated percentage of the entire copyrighted material which is represented by the plagiarized materials in conjunction with the terms of fair use to determine printability. For example, the uniqueness score of file114is seventy five percent (e.g., a quarter of the text is plagiarized from copyrighted materials). Copyright infringement prevention program200then determines the actual percentage of the plagiarized copyrighted materials utilized to be two percent of the copyrighted materials (e.g., ninety-eight percent of the copyrighted material was not plagiarized). Under fair use, the copyrighted materials would not exceed the acceptable threshold, and the printing of file114may be allowed. However, in an alternate example, the uniqueness score is fifty percent for file114(e.g., half of the materials are plagiarized), but the actual percentage of the copyrighted materials utilized is one hundred percent (e.g., all of the copyrighted material is plagiarized in file114). With respect to fair use, the acceptable threshold would be exceeded, and the printing of file114would be prohibited.

Copyright infringement prevention program200may alternatively determine the copyrighted materials are subject to another's copyright and are prohibited (e.g., not found in the public domain, invalid or no copyright license is held, do not pass the threshold for plagiarism with regards to fair use) and may not be printed. For example, a user attempts to print file114which is a chapter of a book and includes an ISBN number. File114was determined to be copyrighted material as the ISBN is associated with a copyrighted publication, and the plagiarism checker failed with a uniqueness score below a set threshold (e.g., text was plagiarized). Through the ISBN search of the online database (e.g., Copyright Clearance Center), the results reveal the rights holder as a publishing company, and permissions are only available through contacting the rights holder. As the user is not the rights holder and did not previously acquire a license from the rights holder (e.g., permissions were not noted within the user's account), copyright infringement prevention program200, therefore, determines file114cannot be printed.

If copyright infringement prevention program200determines the printing of the copyrighted materials is prohibited (decision224, yes branch), copyright infringement prevention program200cancels the print job request (step228). In another embodiment of step228, copyright infringement prevention program200may cancel the print job and send a notification to the user. For example, the user may receive a notification including the search results, plagiarism uniqueness score, and options to acquire permissions through the Copyright Clearance Center from which further actions by the user may be taken prior to attempting another print request of file114. If copyright infringement prevention program200determines file114contains approved copyrighted materials (decision224, no branch), copyright infringement prevention program200prints file114(step226). In step226, copyright infringement prevention program200, prints file114and stores the print job request information (e.g., metadata and file attributes associated with file114) in printable file attribute storage122. In one embodiment, copyright infringement prevention program200updates previously existing entries in printable file attribute storage122(e.g., updates the number of allowed printed copies by the number of prints requested, updates print permission field). Additionally, copyright infringement prevention program200may update the embedded metadata of file114.

Distributed data processing environment300includes communications fabric302, which provides communications between computer processor(s)304, memory306, persistent storage308, communications unit310, and input/output (I/O) interface(s)312. Communications fabric302can be implemented with any architecture designed for passing data and/or control information between processors (such as microprocessors, communications and network processors, etc.), system memory, peripheral devices, and any other hardware components within a system. For example, communications fabric302can be implemented with one or more buses.

Memory306and persistent storage308are computer readable storage media. In this embodiment, memory306includes random access memory (RAM)414and cache memory316. In general, memory306can include any suitable volatile or non-volatile computer readable storage media.

Copyright infringement prevention program200, file114, printable file attribute storage122, and printer buffer142are stored in persistent storage308for execution and/or access by one or more of the respective computer processors304via one or more memories of memory306. In this embodiment, persistent storage308includes a magnetic hard disk drive. Alternatively, or in addition to a magnetic hard disk drive, persistent storage308can include a solid state hard drive, a semiconductor storage device, read-only memory (ROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), flash memory, or any other computer readable storage media that is capable of storing program instructions or digital information.

Communications unit310, in these examples, provides for communications with other data processing systems or devices, including resources of enterprise grid and client devices. In these examples, communications unit310includes one or more network interface cards. Communications unit310may provide communications through the use of either or both physical and wireless communications links. Copyright infringement prevention program200, file114, printable file attribute storage122, and printer buffer142may be downloaded to persistent storage308through communications unit310.

I/O interface(s)312allows for input and output of data with other devices that may be connected to distributed data processing environment300. For example, I/O interface312may provide a connection to external devices318such as a keyboard, keypad, a touch screen, and/or some other suitable input device. External devices318can also include portable computer readable storage media such as, for example, thumb drives, portable optical or magnetic disks, and memory cards. Software and data used to practice embodiments of the present invention, e.g., copyright infringement prevention program200, file114, printable file attribute storage122, and printer buffer142, can be stored on such portable computer readable storage media and can be loaded onto persistent storage308via I/O interface(s)312. I/O interface(s)312also connect to a display320.