Who Keeps the Copyright?: One Thing That Every Freelance Design Contract Should Have
Posted on August 2nd, 2010 in Small Business, Students | No Comments »
In any project work–whether you’re a designer or a small business owner–you should absolutely commit what you expect out of the project to paper. Writing contracts is difficult, and we’d advise seeking the help of an attorney. Of course, we’re also realists: lawyers are expensive, and it’s highly feasible that you can’t afford one for every project you do. Even still, you should still be agreeing to some key terms with the other party. Today we’re going to talk about one of those key terms: Who keeps the copyright?
In cases of things like logo design, it’s pretty critical for a business to own the copyright as a means of protecting its identity and its brand. Designers, of course, also have reasons to want to retain a copyright–such as the ability to use prior works as a template.
There are two basic solutions to this question.
1) The designer assigns the copyright to the business
Essentially, this means that the designer sells the rights to the work to the business. The business, in effect, becomes the copyright holder.
For this to happen, the assignment agreement (including any limitations) must be committed to writing.
2) The designer grants a license to the business
In essence, this grants the business permission to use the design, but no copyright. After that, things get a bit more complicated; and if you go this route, there are a lot of questions to be answered (eg: is the license exclusive or non-exclusive, is the license revocable or irrevocable, is the license limited or perpetual, etc). While certain types of licenses can effectively exist without any written agreement, it’s probably wise for both parties to put their agreement in writing*.
*Understand that we say this as people versed in the freelance business, not the law. We’re giving business advice, not legal advice: if you really want legal advice, your best bet, as always, is to talk to a lawyer.
