Who owns your website, logo, brochure, software…?
This is a really important realization for many clients and indeed agencies. Having designed countless websites, logos, brands and custom software it is important to know what exactly you are buying.
The following is an exert we obtained from one of the South’s leading law firms who specialise in these matters…
“If you have paid someone to design your website, logo, or brochure or create software for you, it is not unreasonable to assume that the copyright in the end product belongs to you. However, this will not be the case unless you obtained the designer’s express agreement to this when you commissioned the work.
If you haven’t obtained the designer’s agreement to the copyright passing to you, all you have is a licence to use the website, logo, brochure or software.
This may be all that you need, but it might become a problem if you want to sell the business or authorise someone else to use your “property” or get someone else to develop or change what you already have. The original designer can stop you unless you have his agreement, which will normally comes at a price.
Action Points
It is essential to ensure that you get the designer to agree that you will own the copyright at the time you negotiate the terms of the engagement.”
Add this to the T&C’s of an agency and you can easily become confused as to who owns what and where you stand. Reading the T&C’s of any supplier is essential however this is often overlooked as business is regularly done on trust. However lack of understanding from a client or the reluctance of an agency to explain exactly what is being bought and sold is not a valid excuse.
Website source code also remains the copyright of the agency unless written agreement has been agreed. Also this licence to use the source code like any goods remain the sellers property until full payment has been received as is the same with any designed product from a logo to a brochure.
So please be careful that you are aware of what you are purchasing when commissioning a design agency to build you logo, website and materials, that if you require more than a licence and wish to own the copyright then make sure you have the agreement and costing outlined at stage one.
As the South’s leading branding agency we are committed to helping consumers understand what they are buying from agencies and not only to be aware of this but work in partnership with them to build brands with value, success and integrity.
