Why register a computer program?

Under Russian law, software rights are protected in the same way as copyrights to works of literature. However, in contrast to literary works, the state has provided an additional means of protection with respect to the computer program - registration with the federal executive body on intellectual property (Rospatent).

This is the most obvious and easiest way to protect software rights. But how effective is this method of protection and what advantages in rights protection does registration give?

Attention! The article upgrade due to the change of the registration procedure from July 18, 2016 is here .
')

Question	Answer	Comment / output
Is registration of a program mandatory for rights to arise?	No (p. 1 of Art. 1262 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation).	The certificate of state registration of the computer program is not a title deed. It is just one of the proofs of ownership of rights to a particular person.
How reliable are the data in the Certificate and in the Register of Computer Programs?	Information entered into the Register of computer programs is considered reliable, since it has not been proven otherwise (clause 6 of Article 1262 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation).	This provision corresponds to the general presumption of authorship - the author is considered to be the person indicated as the author on the original or copy of the work, unless otherwise proved (art. 1257 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation) and, therefore, adds nothing to protection.
How to verify the data specified in the certificate of registration?	There is only a technical check on the availability of the necessary documents and materials, their compliance with the requirements for registration.	Thus, the data are not verified on the merits .
Who is responsible for the inaccuracy of the information in the certificate?	The applicant (paragraph 6 of Art. 1262 of the Civil Code).	Rospatent is not responsible for the information that he enters in the certificate. It does not even violate the rights of the author, if he introduces false information, because The Certificate itself is not a non-normative act and cannot be challenged in itself. In the event that a proper author proves his authorship in court, Rospatent, on the basis of a court decision, will have to make changes to the Registry.
Does evidence prove an object of intellectual rights?	The computer program has general requirements for the works. In particular - the program should be created by creative work. In this sense, an object that is not the result of creativity cannot be called a work or computer program.	Without checking the program for the creative component, Rospatent goes ahead with slyness and issues a certificate for any nonsense of the submitted application, which may not end up being a program from the point of view of the law.
Is the evidence at least proof that the program exists and works?	Not.	Rospatent does not check if the program is working.
How much is?	State Duty: For organizations - 2600 rubles. For an individual - 1700 rubles. (Art. 333.30 of the Tax Code) Changes since 01/01/2015: For organizations - 4500 rubles. For an individual - 3000 rubles.	And once having registered a computer program, it will be necessary to register agreements on the alienation of a computer program and pay a fee for it.
What is the meaning of state registration?	This is one of the proofs of your rights + deposit of materials.	The evidence is ordinary and is based only on the opinion of the applicant, which is not confirmed either by experts or even by third parties.
What is the conclusion?	To confirm the authorship and the fact of acquisition of intellectual rights to software, and therefore for their subsequent commercialization, it is desirable to additionally provide themselves with more reliable evidence and documents.	If you are shown only evidence and no longer provide any documents to prove your rights, then check these authors and ask for additional proof of authorship.