Whether you’re a creative agency or freelancer that creates specialised content for companies in need, or you’re a company seeking the help of a skilled consultant to provide content for the business - a content contributor agreement aims to effectively assign intellectual property rights in the content and ensure the creator is credited for their work.
What is this contributor agreement template?
A content contributor agreement is a legally binding contract between a content creator and a company that outlines the terms and conditions under which the creator's content will be created for the company and how the creator will be compensated.
A well-drafted content contributor agreement will clearly define the scope of the content to be created, outline the expectations and responsibilities of each party, and establish the terms of payment. It will also help to ensure that the work is of a high quality and that deadlines are met, and provides a legal framework for the project should any disputes arise.
What are the key benefits of Docue's contributor agreement template?
Effectively assign IP rights: Without a clear and effective transfer of the IP rights in the work created, there may be some confusion over who actually owns the IP in the future. This contributor agreement template contains provisions that ensure the ownership of the IP rights in the work (or multiple works) are assigned from the creator to the company commissioning the work.
Reduces the risk of disputes: A comprehensive content contributor agreement template can help reduce the risk of disputes between a company and content creator by clearly outlining the scope of the work to be created, the responsibilities and expectations of both parties. This can help to prevent misunderstandings and conflicts later on down the line.
Fully customisable clauses: This contributor agreement template includes optional clauses to suit the agreement between the parties and will be automatically drafted with terms in your favour (i.e pro-company or pro-creator). For example, you can choose to include clauses giving the creator rights to be credited as the author of the content, or this can be left out depending on the circumstances. Another great example of Docue's optionality is the payment terms - this content contributor agreement template gives you the option to choose if the creator will receive a one-off payment, royalties for each sale or use of the works, or if the fees will be based on the creator’s hourly/daily rates.
How is this content contributor agreement different from a standard services agreement?
A content contributor agreement provides a more specialised approach for content creation when it comes to protecting both parties, specifying authorship rights and ensuring the IP rights, as well as the work, is transferred to the company.
For example, when a company pays for someone to provide or create content on its behalf, the intellectual property rights in that content in most cases will automatically belong to the person who created the content. This is different compared to when employees create content for the company, where under English law, the general position is that the company will own the IP rights created by its employees. In this scenario, you’ll need a document that asserts any intellectual property created is the property of the business itself. To ensure the IP transfer takes place, a content contributor agreement will effectively assign any IP created by the creator to the company. This is often used for copyright, but can also cover other potential IP rights.
What are the key terms that this content contribution agreement should include?
Key terms: Docue’s dynamic contributor agreement template covers, among other things, the following matters:
- Assignment of rights;
- Moral rights (this type of IP right cannot be assigned, only waived);
- Credit and self-promotion;
- Warranties;
- Fee and payment;
- Indemnity; and
- Law and jurisdiction.
This contributor agreement template assumes that there will be a payment made in exchange for the content. If you are searching for a template that transfers the ownership of copyright from one party to another without a payment being made, then our assignment of copyright (deed) template will be suitable.
When should this contributor agreement template not be used?
This content contributor agreement template should only be used where the creator will be assigning the intellectual property rights in the works to the company. If you only intend to licence the intellectual property rights in the work, and not assign the ownership, then check out our:
- Copyright Licence if the work will be protected by copyright;
- Trade Mark Licence if the work will include one or more trade marks (registered or unregistered); or
- Intellectual Property Licence if the work(s) will be protected by copyright and trade marks.
Why use Docue?
Dynamic: The contributor agreement template is drafted and maintained by UK qualified lawyers. Docue’s cutting-edge technology combined with our lawyer-made content allows you to create, customise, e-sign, store and manage your content contributor agreement all in one place.
Easy to use with favourable terms: This contributor agreement template also includes guidance prepared by our lawyers that supports you through the contract creation process. Once you have selected which party you are, the terms are automatically in favour of the party that you are acting on behalf of (i.e. the creator or the company).
Transparent pricing: Our pricing is clear and cost-effective, without the traditional hefty bill that legal services usually entail.
Tags: Content creator agreement, contributor agreement template, content creation agreement, writer agreement, content ownership, content assignment, content contribution, creator, IP, IPR, works, royalties, transfer of IP rights
