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information technology
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| software development |
Technology runs through the heart of every business. Whether you are a consumer of technology or a creator of bits and bytes, technology will be the very life source of your business in one form or another. Businesses increasingly recognise the importance of successfully negotiating software licenses, procurement and development agreements and of building and defending the tangible and intangible value in their technology. Armies of lawyers aren’t needed for this but what is required are lawyers who have technology expertise.
Our team of technology lawyers understand the technological components of legal agreements and their specification schedules and don’t simply confine themselves to boilerplate drafting. At White & Black, we pride ourselves on being hooked into technology and we leverage our legal, commercial and technical expertise in everything we do. |
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| technology licensing | |||
software development
In today’s global economy the development of software is no longer solely an in-house task. Software development, whether in proprietary or open-source formats, is now being off-shored to India, Eastern Europe, South Africa and elsewhere. Whilst it may be relatively simple to procure software development services, how do businesses know what they are about to sign up to? Project management, specification schedules, change of control procedures and scope/project creep are just some of the challenges of software development which we can guide you through.
More and more software development agreements rely on agile processes and the deployment of methodologies such as SCRUM and XP (Extreme Programming). These are not for the feint-hearted but can often deliver the best results for cutting edge software or start-up environments. At White & Black we not only have expertise in the drafting of software development agreements but we have first hand experience of procuring such services and managing software development projects.
technology licensing
The commercial exploitation of technology doesn’t just occur when you own it. Significant commercialisation of technology can occur in the giving and the taking of certain rights in the technology, usually in the form of a licence. Licences usually offer lower total costs of ownership and can enable a quicker route to market by taking advantage of someone else’s development time.
Licensing is not without its complications. Licensing by its very nature means that the licensee is reliant on an ongoing commercial (and legal) relationship with the rights owner and therefore careful consideration must be given to the conception of that relationship. Such licences can be restricted to specific geographic scope, uses and duration. Careful consideration of these can make licensing a highly effective way of exploiting IP.