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I created an application, how to protect it?

Context and challenge to solve

Congratulations, you have an original application idea and are about to make it a reality. You have already written your specifications, the project is under development and is progressing well. You are wondering about ways to protect your work.

Solution and Benefits

Make a deposit containing all the elements relating to your project (specifications, source code, object code, technical documentation, graphical interfaces, database, etc.) with the APP as soon as they are created and, at least, before presenting your creation to a potential investor or partner.

Do not hesitate to present to the third parties to whom you disclose your creation the IDDN certificate issued by the APP when it is registered, as this shows that you have taken steps to assert your rights in the event of a copy of your creation and it is also a way of reassuring investors about the seriousness of your creation process.

If it is not possible to dissuade a third party from copying all or part of your application, the deposit of the elements constituting your creation will allow you to pre-constitute proof of your rights and to prove more easily this copy as well as your anteriority on the project. In the context of a dispute, it is often difficult for the victim of counterfeiting to prove that he or she owns the rights to the copied creation. The APP deposit allows you to remedy these difficulties and benefit from proof of your rights that can be presented to a judge.

Business leader, how to effectively value your digital assets?

Context and challenge to solve

Your company is very dynamic. Many of the elements that constitute its value are intangible. Indeed, its know-how, methodologies, information system, client database, etc. are all so-called digital or intangible assets. How can you materialize this value in your balance sheet? How to promote your innovations?

Solution and Benefits

In order to materialize your intangible assets, depositing at the APP is a simple way to assert them in your company’s balance sheet. Deposit your digital assets will allow you to benefit from the mapping of your various intangible assets and to delimit their outline to better evaluate them.

By materializing your digital creations through deposit, you add value to your business, especially because you benefit from the material representation of each of them at a given moment. The more you deposit your digital creations and their different versions, the more you will value them over time as intangible assets.

You are selling your business and you must delimit the assets related to intellectual property.

Context and challenge 

You are in the process of selling your business and are asked to list the technological assets: software, websites, databases, etc. These elements will be audited and constitute an important, if not major, part of the sale price.

Solution and Benefits

It is necessary to constitute a coherent and presentable set of its intangible assets. This includes a presentation that provides a complete overview of the elements that can be valued.

The APP’s portfolio management solution not only allows you to deposit but also to present a complete and detailed view of your portfolio of intangible assets.

This approach has an insurance effect because it testifies to the seriousness and rigour with which you manage your assets.

It facilitates and accelerates audit operations.

 Following the departure of a developer from the company, how to ensure that his work belongs to the company?

Context and challenge to solve

A member of the development team decides to leave the company. This team develops innovative software that ensures your market leadership. Your employee’s departure takes place in a context of tension. How can you ensure that he does not reuse your intangible assets or claim ownership of the digital creations he has developed?

Solution and Benefits

The IP rights to a digital work (website, database, etc.) belong to its author, even if the latter has been specifically hired to create the work. A contract for the transfer of IP rights respecting the conditions of validity laid down by the Intellectual Property Code must be concluded between the author and his employer so that the latter can become the owner of the IP rights relating to the creation and can exploit them.

There is one exception which concerns software developed by an employee in the performance of his duties or according to the instructions of his employer: the IP rights relating to this software are automatically transferred to the employer, who can therefore freely exploit them. If the software has been developed by an intern or an external service provider, this rule does not apply and it is then necessary to conclude an assignment contract for the employer to become the rights holder on the software.

To complete your approach, in addition to the assignment contract, it is recommended to make a deposit with a third party escrow agent from the very beginning of the work’s creation. The deposit at the APP will allow you to materialize your digital creations, in particular to prove your paternity over them and benefit from a presumption of ownership to more easily prove your rights over the digital work in the event of a conflict. Indeed, each deposit at the APP results in the issuance of an IDDN certificate that mentions the name of the rights holder and demonstrates that you have the anteriority on your digital creation, since by depositing it with the APP, you give a certain date to your deposit.

The APP will soon provide you with a tool to secure these transfer operations. If you would like to know more and be informed of the release date of this new tool, please contact us here.

A third party accuses you of counterfeiting?

Context and challenge to solve

Following the success of your new application, a former partner wrongly accuses you of copying his project. Admittedly, you called on him for one of the application’s functionalities, but it is you who are at the origin of the project as a whole. Your competitor wants to take legal action. How can we protect ourselves against this type of difficulty?

Solution and Benefits

If you call on a third party to carry out all or part of your project, it is essential to conclude an assignment contract, so that it transfers its IP rights on the elements it has created to you and so that you can exploit them peacefully. Otherwise, your partner will remain the rights holder on the elements he has developed and may oppose the exploitation of your creation.

It is also recommended to submit the elements of the project at each stage of its evolution in order to allow you to organize a real evidence-based strategy.

Make a deposit with the APP allows you to pre-constitute proof of your rights on your digital solution, to benefit from a presumption of ownership and to materialize the evolutions of your creation.

How can you protect yourself against the risk of failure of a major supplier for your business?

Context and challenge to solve

You work closely with the supplier of an important solution for your business. Your contract with him is crucial to the success of your business. How to ensure the sustainability of your business in the event of failure (collective proceedings, non-compliance with contractual commitments, etc.) of your supplier?

Solution and Benefits

Escrow is the appropriate solution since its main objective is to secure the relationship between the supplier of a digital creation and its client. Indeed, it allows the client to access the deposited elements (source code of a software, technical and configuration documentation, plans, etc.) with a third party escrow agent according to the provisions of the contract.

This ensures that the client can continue to use the technology despite the failure of his supplier. It is thus reassured on the sustainability of its investments and avoids financial and time losses since it will not have to look for an alternative solution, to deploy it, to train its teams, etc.

For the supplier, escrow is a commercial advantage in contract negotiations.

In addition to being a third party escrow agent of the deposited elements, the APP offers you a model escrow agreement, assists the parties in its implementation and ensures the proper performance of the contract.

You are an investor, how to secure the technological elements of a company?

Context and challenge

You have been exchanging for a few weeks with a team that has just set up a company in the blockchain sector and in which you wish to invest. On this innovative technology, skills are rare. In the team, only two associate engineers have the necessary expertise. In order to secure your investment, in an uncertain phase, it seems necessary to you to sequester the technological elements. Indeed, at this stage all scenarios are possible: departure of one of the key founders, claim of third parties, technological looting, etc.

Solution and Benefits

Escrow allows you to secure technological elements. First, it provides for the sequestration of assets (source code of software, technical and configuration documentation, plans, etc.) to a third party. Then, depending on the contractual provisions in place, it allows access to these elements for the benefit of third parties.

The deposit, at the APP, of the technological elements you wish to acquire allows you to secure your investment. It also ensures that you have access to the technological assets according to the contractual provisions in place, in order to continue the project.

You are a founder, how to secure the technological elements of a company and reassure potential investors?

Context and challenge

You are raising funds. In this context, you must reassure investors about your policy to protect your technological assets.

Solution and Benefits

It is necessary to carry out deposit operations on your assets in order to present a coherent and auditable set, if possible at each stage of their evolution to increase the value as evidence and map your portfolio of digital assets.

Carrying out this type of approach shows how serious you are in your protection approach. In addition, regular deposits of elements relating to your company’s activity allow you to pre-constitute proof of your rights over them and to ensure their protection.

You will meet partners. How to protect your technological elements?

Context and challenge 

Negotiations are progressing with an interesting partner for your development. At this stage, you will need to disclose information that is strategic for your company but necessary to continue the exchanges with your partner. How can you effectively protect yourself to move forward in the negotiations?

Solution and Benefits

The most common practice is to sign confidentiality agreements prior to meeting with partners.

But there are other ways to protect your technological elements. Depositing your digital creations at the APP is the adapted, simple and fast solution for your urgent protection needs. Over the long term, the regular deposit of the different versions of your digital works allows you to map your portfolio of digital assets and build up a permanent history for proof purposes.

The deposit at the APP will allow you to benefit from a presumption of ownership to more easily prove your rights over the digital work in the event of a conflict. It also allows you to demonstrate that you have the anteriority on your technological elements, since by depositing them at the APP, you give a certain date to your deposit.

How can you ensure ownership of the services provided by your subcontractors?

Context and challenge 

You will use subcontracting for the creation of databases, websites, software development, etc. You are wondering about the rights of your service providers regarding the technological elements created for this purpose.  You wish to secure, from a legal point of view, your relations with your subcontractors.

Solution and Benefits

If you call on a third party to carry out all or part of your project, it is essential to conclude an assignment contract, so that it transfers its IP rights on the elements it has created to you and so that you can exploit them peacefully. Otherwise, your partner will remain the rights holder on the elements he has developed and may oppose the exploitation of your creation.

In addition, depositing your digital creations at the APP as well as your strategic assets that cannot be protected by IP rights (specifications, documents relating to your creations, procedures, etc.) will allow you to give a certain date to the elements deposited and ensure their traceability for proof purposes.

Deposit operations allow you to clearly delimit the assets transferred and to avoid future disputes.

You are a multinational or an Intermediate Size Company, with an intense R&D activity, and you wish to implement an ambitious evidence-based strategy for your software assets.

Context and challenge 

Your patent and trademark policy is perfectly well established, but some technological assets are not adequately protected, which is all the more risky since you involve many internal and external contacts and have put in place complex licensing and co-ownership agreements. You would therefore like to implement a policy to protect your intangible assets.

Solution and Benefits

The APP’s services allow a real management of intangible assets portfolio with all the complexity that this implies:

• support and implementation of assets valuation strategies;
• management of mandatories and delegations of deposits;
• management of joint ownership and transfer operations;
• management of contracts providing for access to data by a third party.

By joining the APP, which has already supported more than 17,000 Members of all sizes and in a wide variety of fields, you benefit from the support and expertise of our teams, both technical and legal, in the implementation of your evidence-based strategy. The APP also offers you personalized support in protecting your portfolio of creations and is at your disposal to meet your legal, operational and commercial needs.

You have access to our innovative and secure legal protection solutions (in compliance with recognized standards), adapted to your business volume and the nature of your needs.

You are a cyber-insurer and you want to know the intangible assets of your insured.

Context and challenge 

As part of a cyber-insurance contract, you want to delimit the insured’s intangible assets. The aim is to identify assets and set up a valuation methodology.

Solution and Benefits

It is recommended to make a deposit of the insured’s assets. Ideally, these deposits should be accompanied by a specific business reference and/or an archive classification plan adapted to the data provided.

This operation allows you to know precisely the insured’s assets and to evaluate the insurable risks in agreement with the insured.

For this type of project, do not hesitate to contact the APP for specific support.