Mike wrote:
>if getting the contract means enough to you that you're willing to
>hand over the copyright as part of the deal, i'd say they're within
>their rights to pull your logo from the page.
It's important to remember that unless you sign away a right, you own it.
You can be very specific in what rights you grant. You can, for instance,
grant the right of first publication on the Web and desig nate as a
condition of granting that right that the designer's logo is included. The
client is only "within their rights" to do anything when you have
specifically signed over that right IN WRITING. Don't assume that the
client owns any rights. They don't, until you grant them in writing.
OTOH, i should think
>that means they also accept all future responsibility for the pages
>once they take delivery. no calling you up for tweaks and twiddling,
>calling it part of the original agreement.
>
>hmm.. how does this sound?
Again, future maintenance can be part of or excluded from the bundle of
rights you grant to them. You could, for instance, grant the right of first
publication on the Web, without granting the client the right to modify the
site. Again, as the original owner of all rights, it's up to you to give
away only what you want to give away or sell.
>assuming this passes review by those members who actually *know*
>intellectual property law, it turns your logo into a symbol of
>completion. the price of getting your logo off the pages is for them
>to make up their minds, pay up, and get off your back. if they want
>to waffle, or hold back payment claiming things still need to be done,
>they have to put up with your logo.. they can't claim any rights of
>ownership if they refuse to take posession.
Personally, I think this is a weak position. What if the client suddenly
decides that he'd rather keep your logo on his site than pay you that last
$5000 he owes you? More useful might be a password protection scheme as
well as keeping the site on your own server instead of the client's. In the
final analysis, your best protection is to have everything detailed in
writing so that if necessary, you can go to small claims court. The beauty
of good written documentation and contractual materials is that it usually
prevents problems that might otherwise lead to lawsuits.
I handle it by stating on estimates, contracts and invoices that Stephens
Design retains ALL rights until full payment has been received. I state
that are payments due in 1/2s or 1/3s, that payments are due within 5
business days of the client's receipt of invoice, that work will not begin
until a 1/3 or 1/2 deposit has been received, and that work will be halted
or is liable to be pulled offline if payments are not received within 5
days. It is also important, as stated before, to have a clearly defined
summary of expectations so that you can draw a line in the sand and say,
"sorry, we've done all we agreed to do."
In actuality, we are usually quite flexible and easy-going with clients.
But by always staying on top of those 1/3 payments, we assure that a job is
never finished without our having been paid for at least 2/3 of it. I think
it's also important to set a tone up front, saying, in effect, "yes, we may
be highly talent and creative, but first and foremost, we are a business
and this is a business arrangement."
Suz
Suzanne Stephens, Dave Stephens Design; Ashland, Oregon
541-552-1190, 541-1192 http://www.KickassDesign.com/
CyberCircus Grand Prize Winners http://www.thecybercircus.com/
Web Page Design for Designers: http://www.wpdfd.com/wpdres.htm
Clip Art: http://www.freeimages.com/artists/
Tender Loving Care Interactive DVD movie: http://tenderlovingcare.cc/
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