A Practical Guide to Software Licensing for Licensees and Licensors

With intellectual property rights assuming greater importance in today's world and licensing issues and developments constantly evolving, this book is an essential resource for lawyers who need to understand software licensing. The sixth edition examines the fundamental issues that both licensors and licensees confront in the negotiation of a software license and, where appropriate, looks at relevant ancillary issues such as software development, cloud computing, professional services, and maintenance and support. It primarily focuses on non-mass market agreements, since most “retail” or mass market “off-the-shelf” software is governed by non-negotiable “shrink-wrap,” “browse-wrap,” and “click-wrap” licenses. Nonetheless, the principles of software licensing are the same for shrink-wrap, browse-wrap, click-wrap, and custom-developed software.

Written in practical, easy-to-understand language, this book is cross-referenced to a model agreement. It is written from the perspective of both the licensor and the licensee and includes model forms with alternative clauses to fit many perspectives. New to this edition, an online website will accompany the book that includes customizable and easy-to-use forms and agreements. The sixth edition includes new chapters on: