Members of our Technology team have significant experience in advising software developers, publishers and users in relation to software licensing issues and the drafting of software licences and support and maintenance agreements. Our lawyers have expertise in copyright and database law matters, and keep up-to-date with industry news and trends. We have specific experience in drafting numerous types of software licence agreements and different types of software.

We have a large experienced team based in the UK and across Central and Eastern Europe, and working in partnership with colleagues from other CMS offices and partner firms in the Middle East and Asia, we are able to offer cross-border legal advice on international transactions.  We are sensitive to the different approaches to software licensing and the associated liabilities taken in different jurisdictions, and we are able to tailor our advice and negotiation strategies accordingly.

Our services cover:

• Shrink-wrap and click-wrap software licences (including licences for use with consumers)
• Open source licences (including software licences for software that links to open source software)
• Licences for software to be developed or which is in development
• Licences for specific types of software, including off-the-shelf, bespoke, internet modules (ie Flash), Software as a Service (SaaS), and APIs
• Development licences to include existing code in a new development of software
• Service Provider Licence Agreements (SPLAs) and licences to be used in outsourcing transactions
• Escrow agreements for source code
• Source code licences and licences for 'look and feel'
   

Relevant experience includes advising:

• A large private hospital group on the drafting and negotiation of software licences for clinical lab software
• Nominet, the .UK domain name registry on open source licensing issues
• Metronet Rail on the drafting and negotiation of software licences for telephone control systems
• Iris Software on the full range of licensing and support and maintenance agreements for accounting and financial management software products, including shrink-wrap and click-wrap licences
• A carbon reduction company on software licensing for proprietary green waste treatment and disposal systems
• The Department of Trade and Industry on a software development agreement for a UK record-keeping function
• A top four UK retail bank on the development and procurement of an IT system for the management and administration of multi-billion pound financial assets
• A prime contractor on the supply of IT development services for the NHS IT programme
• On the development and procurement of IT systems for the oil and gas industry