The Copyright Act 98 of 1978 (the Act) governs the law of
copyright in South Africa. In terms of the Act, a computer program
is eligible for copyright protection if certain conditions are
met.
The Act defines a computer program as "a set of
instructions fixed or stored in any manner and which, when used
directly in a computer, directs its operation to bring about a
result." From this definition it is apparent that source code
forms the subject matter of copyright protection as a computer
program.
Among other things, the owner of copyright in a computer program
has the exclusive right to reproduce the computer program in any
manner or form and to make an adaptation of the computer program.
The owner may also authorise others to perform the aforesaid
acts.
