Some Issues on Agent Ownership 1
Agent ownership is a complex issue that crosses legal domains. There are at least two different dimensions to agent ownership. On one dimension, an agent is a piece of software and as such it is an intellectual property which belongs to its owner and is governed by the law on intellectual property. On another dimension, a software agent can act like a business agent. In this paper we discuss some of the social and legal ramifications of software agents and highlight areas where agent ownership will be of interest.