Patent Granted for System to Prevent Printed Textbook Piracy

The patent recognizes that the system diminishes the freedom of professors to design courses. To offset that impact, claims 1, 6 and 11 establish that “a percentage of the students' purchases [will be distributed] to beneficiaries” who enhance academic freedom. In effect, textbooks that bear Principiis Obsta—the trademark for the Web-based system—will underwrite academic freedom through the royalties paid by publishers.