Abandonware

Abandonware refers to computer software that is no longer sold or supported, or whose copyright ownership may be unclear for various reasons. While the term has been applied largely to older games, other classes of software are sometimes described as such.

Definitions of "abandoned" vary; generally, it refers to software no longer available for legal purchase, or of a certain age. Software companies may change their names, go bankrupt, enter into mergers, or cease to exist for a variety of reasons. When this happens, product rights are usually transferred to another company that may not sell or support the software acquired.

In most cases, software classed as abandonware is not in the public domain, as it has never had its original copyright revoked.

People have distributed old software since shortly after the dawn of personal computing, but the activity remained low-key until the advent of the Internet. While trading old games has taken many names and forms, the actual term "abandonware" was coined by Peter Ringering in late 1996. Ringering found classic game websites similar to his own, contacted their webmasters, and formed the original Abandonware Ring in February 1997. This original webring was little more than a collection of sites linking to adventureclassicgaming.com. Another was a site indexing them all to provide a rudimentary search facility. In October 1997, the Interactive Digital Software Association sent cease and desist letters to all sites comprising the Abandonware Ring, which led to most shutting down. An unintended consequence was that it spurred others to create new abandonware sites and organizations that came to outnumber the original Ring members. Sites formed after the demise of the original Abandonware Ring include Abandonia and Home of the Underdogs.
Rarely has any abandonware case gone to court. In November 2006 the Library of Congress approved an exemption to US copyright law that permits the cracking of copy protection on software no longer being sold or supported by its copyright holder so that they can be archived and preserved without fear of retribution. It is still unlawful to distribute the old software and games, free or otherwise, in any Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works signatory country.

Several websites archive abandonware for download, including old versions of applications which are difficult to find by any other means. Much of this software fits the definition of "software that is no longer current, but is still of interest", but the line separating the use and distribution of abandonware from copyright infringement is blurry, and the term abandonware could be used to distribute software without proper notification of the owner.
The Internet Archive has created an archive of what it describes as "vintage software", as a way to preserve them. The project advocated for an exemption from the United States Digital Millennium Copyright Act to permit them to bypass copy protection, which was approved in 2003 for a period of 3 years. The exemption was renewed in 2006, and is currently due to expire on 27 October 2009. The Archive does not offer this software for download, as the exemption is solely "for the purpose of preservation or archival reproduction of published digital works by a library or archive."